POST DVD TRIP REPORT

Hi Tom,

Just got back from Florida and wanted to report how I felt this time
around......maybe helpful for others to hear....

...previous to these two flights, I completed the DVD course
( in January) as well as having had sessions with you in the past
years and found that I had a NEW confidence in the integrity of
the actual airplane itself...ie. I TRUSTED that the plane was an
extremely well maintained, special piece of machinery that was
meant to FLY !!!!

...I was substantially more relaxed on take-off (usually a time of
great anxiety), and found that counting the seconds to 'lift-off'
helped....it appears that it takes 50 seconds .......so on the way
home I new that there was no problem before the 50 second count
(ie. I used to panic and ask my husband when it would leave the
ground thinking that it should have already have happened well
before the 50 second mark !)

....on landing back in Toronto I would have to say this was a first
for me in that I had no anxiety and loved looking out of the window
and looking at the beautiful sight of the city lights.... WOW! ...it was
as if it was the first time observing this awsome sight and believe me,
I've flown into Toronto many times and was too nervous to enjoy the
experience.


....The pilots met with me on both flights and on the return, he held
my hand when talking with me in the cockpit....what a nice man!


....and now for the weak area--- I'm still anxious the morning of, the
way to the airport and waiting in the lounge, so I think I should work
on that part re- the strenthening exercise...what do you think?

Thanks again Tom for all of the support and best regards,

-----

MY REPLY

That's great! I'm glad to hear that - even though you have done so
much work before - that this provided a real boost.

About the anticipatory anxiety . . .

The Strengthening Exercise includes scenes prior to the flight,
but even so, it doesn't do a good job of controlling anticipatory
anxiety. The 5,4,3,2,1 does, so that is what I suggest you rely on.
Once you start using it, and use it every few minutes, I think that
just knowing you can use it and completely get rid of anticipatory
anxiety (for the time you are doing it and for a few minutes afterwards)
will help in a possibly unexpected way. Just knowing you have an
effective tool will lessen the anticipatory anxiety.

Now, you also have to deal with the question of whether it really is
'safe' to not worry. We easily tend to think that worrying about
something will tend to ward it off, and all you need to do to cause
something awful to happen, is to relax and think everything is OK.

So just the recognition that we all have doubt that it is really 'safe'
to not worry may help you see that that is unnecessary, and allow
you to use the 5,4,3,2,1 freely.

Yours truly,

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So is this.

==========

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