How to Manage Travel Anxiety

With an increase in reports of plane crashes and incidents, a growing number of people are feeling anxious to fly. Learn how to cope with travel anxiety so you can fly with a sense of ease.

The recent string of plane accidents covered in the media – including the American Airlines jet collision with a Black Hawk helicopter in January 2025 and the Delta jet that flipped over on the runway in Toronto in February 2025 – have triggered a fear of flying.

This fear, known as aerophobia, is a common condition that affects an estimated 25 million Americans and is classified in the DSM-5, the official guide used by mental health professionals to diagnose mental disorders.

“I don’t normally have any anxiety about flying, but it doesn’t seem like a coincidence that there’s been an uptick in plane crashes or incidents,” says Kendall H., 32, who works in advertising in New York City. “It made me nervous about upcoming trips.”

Despite recent tragedies, traveling by air is still considered a safe mode of transport. Research published in August 2024 by MIT researchers revealed that the death risk of boarding aircraft worldwide was 1 in 13.7 million from 2018-2022.

This phenomenon of feeling anxious or traumatized after watching a harrowing video online is known as media vicarious traumatization. Research is only beginning to scratch the surface, but various treatment methods can help reverse these fears. If, like Kendall H., you’ve recently begun having travel anxiety, similar coping strategies can help you feel safer when flying.

What Is Aerophobia?

Aerophobia is a type of travel anxiety that occurs when a person experiences extreme feelings of fear, discomfort and unease before or during a flight.

Symptoms can include:

• Intrusive and obsessive thoughts about flying

• Feelings of panic and overwhelm about not knowing what will happen when you travel

• Restlessness

• Rapid heartbeat

• Sweating

• Nausea

“People with travel anxiety often anticipate worst-case scenarios, which contribute to overall stress,” says Kim Hertz, a psychotherapist at NY Therapy Practice.

Many people can experience aerophobia. Those who are at an increased risk of experiencing travel anxiety include people who have:

• Never flown before

• Had negative flying experiences

• Underlying anxiety, such as generalized anxiety disorder

• Past traumatic experiences or a clinical post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnosis

For people with generalized anxiety disorder or social anxiety, the feelings of overwhelm may come from having to navigate new situations that can be unpredictable, more so than flying itself.

“Those who tend to overthink situations are also more prone to travel anxiety, as they are more likely to try and control external factors.”

Strategies to Cope With Travel Anxiety

1. Plan ahead

A sense of preparedness can help ease travel anxiety, experts say. Crafting a travel plan well ahead of your trip is one way you can set yourself up for success.

While some factors, like flight delays or unplanned connections, can’t be predicted or prevented, what you can control on most airlines is your seat assignment, whether you want a direct flight or a connecting one and the general time of day you wish to depart.

Making these decisions can help ease worry and make you feel like you have some control, Hertz explains.

“Plan by researching your destination, confirming reservations and creating a calming pre-travel routine,” says Dr. Jasleen Salwan, a physician who specializes in internal medicine and addiction medicine at Start Your Recovery.

2. Use exposure therapy

Exposure therapy is another way you can help your body and mind get ready for travel. It’s a form of psychological treatment that gradually exposes them to the source of their fear in a safe, controlled environment in order to help them confront their phobias and reduce their anxieties.

Visiting the airport before your trip or taking smaller trips between now and your bigger flight can help simulate some of the uncertainties of the airport experience, including transportation delays and anxiety around forgetting necessary items and travel documents, Hertz explains.

Running through this routine can help you build confidence so that you can move through travel day with ease.

3. Aim for comfort

Get comfortable by bringing a travel pillow and wearing comfortable clothing to ease your anxiety.

By minimizing your physical discomfort, you can – to a degree – lower your overall stress and prevent tension and overheating that can mimic or exacerbate anxiety symptoms.

4. Practice mindfulness

Engaging in relaxation techniques, such as meditation and breathing exercises, can help ease the mind and body.

“These techniques can be useful at the airport, which can be a stress-inducing environment,” Hertz says. “Finding a space to sit and practice deep breathing for a few minutes can restore a sense of balance and calm back in your body.”

If you’re lucky, the airport you’re flying out of may have a yoga room. There are several major airports around the country – including San Francisco International Airport, O’Hare International Airport and Miami International Airport – that offer this special amenity for travelers.

Once you're airborne, the best thing you can do is stay calm.

“Practice controlled breathing, listen to guided relaxation audio or use visualization to imagine a peaceful scenario,” Salwan says.

5. Arrive early

Arriving early can also help prevent you from rushing through various checkpoints – such as checking a bag and going through security – and keep stress levels low.

6. Distract yourself

Distracting yourself from anxious thoughts by listening to music, reading a book or doing a puzzle can also help reduce fear and tension at the airport.

When you’re in flight, consider watching a fun movie, reading a calming book or playing a virtual game to help pass time and shift your focus away from anxious thoughts, Salwan suggests.

7. Avoid caffeine

Keeping your caffeine intake low during a flight may help prevent anxiety. Research suggests this approach is especially important for those with panic disorder.

Instead, try a herbal tea instead, or sip on a ginger ale, which is often caffeine-free.

When to Seek Professional Help

If your fear of flying becomes all-consuming, that’s likely a sign it’s time to talk to a mental health care provider about your options for additional support.

“If you are avoiding travel or your worry is persistent and interfering with daily activities or hindering relationships, work and sleep, it may be time to seek professional help,” Hertz says.

Therapy techniques that can help include:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is a type of therapy that can help you change certain behavioral patterns by facing your fears. This approach can help you reframe thinking patterns that often lead to a sense of panic or other emotions linked with psychological distress. This approach can help you face your fears by identifying (and deconstructing) your psychological distortions that contribute to negative behaviors, such as avoidance and physiological reactions to fear.

• Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR). EMDR can address negative thoughts and phobias associated with travel by targeting the belief system that becomes activated in these stressful situations.

• Exposure therapy. Similar to CBT, exposure therapy can help you target your fears head-on. With this method, a trained professional will help you safely “expose” yourself to situations, objects, or activities that cause you to panic. There are several strategies, including physically inserting yourself in a situation (like doing a trial run at the airport) or imagining yourself in that situation while in the comforts of home (like visualizing how you’ll feel while on a plane with turbulence).

Combining therapy with relaxation techniques – like meditation, breathing and grounding – can help reduce anxiety triggers and help you manage travel-related stress better, Salwan adds.

In some cases, a psychiatrist or a physician may recommend you take antidepressants, like an serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), to help tame recurrent anxious thoughts. This is especially the case if you have a mental health condition, like panic disorder or generalized anxiety disorder.

Bottom Line

Despite several recent plane crashes in and near the U.S., flying is still considered one of the safest modes of transportation. That said, your fears are valid.

Leaning on your support system, such as your friends and family, and mental health professionals such as a therapist can help you navigate these fears.

How you prepare for your flight is just as important as the coping strategies you use while on the flight.

“Practicing mindfulness, journaling thoughts and emotions, and developing coping mechanisms can make future trips less stressful,” Salwan says.

Kim Hertz, LCSW-R, JD

Hertz is a licensed clinical social worker based in New York City who specializes in individual and couples psychotherapy, EMDR for trauma and maternal mental health focusing on fertility issues, miscarriage and neonatal loss.

Jasleen Salwan, MD, MPH, FASAM

Salwan is a physician specializing in Internal Medicine and Addiction Medicine at Start Your Recovery.

Original article: https://health.usnews.com/wellness/mind/articles/how-to-manage-travel-anxiety#expert-sources By Cheyenne Buckingham