How to apply positive self-talk and to employ the process of suggestibility to overcome fear of flying
Why should we want to overcome fear of flying, specifically?
While there are lots of fears experienced by a wide variety of people, probably one of the most common today is the fear of flying. It may not have a debilitating effect on everybody, but for a culture that relies so much on air travel it can be especially problematic for many people.
Some people who would rely most heavily on plane travel are of course those who fly most frequently, such as people who need to travel by plane for business purposes, or those who have family spread out over a wide area and the means with which to keep in frequent touch with them.
These people, however, likely spend so much time flying that they have been able to overcome whatever timidity may have experienced. Instead, it is the people who find themselves by necessity compelled to board a plane, perhaps to visit a relative in an emergency or to travel due to a recent relocation, who are most likely to find themselves suddenly forced to confront their fear. While it may be possible to book an alternative route, this is often cost-prohibitive, especially if travel is required over water. In such cases, it becomes especially necessary to confront the fear.
All right, so how do I employ positive self-talk techniques to help me overcome my fear of flying?
Because the process of employing positive self-talk techniques is really just the process of initiating a program of self-conditioning, many of the techniques used to employ the process are very similar to those used when a subject wishes to engage in self-hypnosis.
Bearing this in mind, subjects will be able to understand why in this instance it can be very helpful to employ the use of recorded tapes or CDs to help in training the mind to overcome the fear of flying. Tapes should obviously not be purchased pre-recorded but instead should be recorded in the subject’s own voice, thereby increasing the comfort level even of those people most resistant to the idea of suggestibility, since recognizing their own voice speaking to them is likely to lower their level of mistrust significantly. If tapes are unavailable or the subject is uncomfortable when using them, start speaking to one directly – the “old-fashioned” way! – Also works.
