Taking a Trip on a Plane

[kittylover0991]

Hey,

My youth group is taking a trip to Indianna for a thing called Empowered Youth.. I am not quite sure what it is .. but I know it is for teh Lord's glory. However, this is my first time on a plane(6 months old does not count )... anyone know how to get over first flight jitters?

[Mongo]

Take Dramimine(sp?) the night before, then another 2 hours before the flight. I can't fly anymore, but when I did I used that ritual and it worked. On long flights, over 3 hours, I would take another about half way.

[kittylover0991]

What is Dramimine?

[kodischild]

What is Dramimine?

Dramamine will help with motion sickness. One of my friends said it made her sleepy, so maybe it will help you rest on the plane, too.

Don't forget to swallow while the plane is going up and coming down.

You'll be an ole' pro in no time.

[Mongo]

Dramamine is a pill that helps with motion sickness, but a side effect of it is that it makes you drousy/sleepy. For me, it wasn't the motion that got to me, but the pill helped immensely. It gave me a "zombie-like" sensation, where I was fine and all, but the world felt "fuzzy" around me. It was sorta like being really groggy/tired. I would then board the plane, get a pillow and snooze til the pretty lady woke me up. On long flights, my bud would wake me up half way through to take another. The effects wear off about 4-5 hours after for me, so I would be able to land, go to the hotal and then hit the jobsites and by dinner time chow time I was fine.

Its available over the counter at any pharmacy. If you are leary, and have lots of time, talk to the pharmacists and try one on the weekend to see how it affects you first if you are still nervous. Also, it doesn't always work so I had to test it prior to my first time.

[yomotalking]

What is Dramimine?

Dramamine will help with motion sickness. One of my friends said it made her sleepy, so maybe it will help you rest on the plane, too.

Don't forget to swallow while the plane is going up and coming down.

You'll be an ole' pro in no time.

My doc recomended Chewing Gum!!!!

[Pipit]

Of course, this is good if you suffer from motion sickness. But really, it is not motion sickness we are being asked about... it is about that 'I never been on a plane before what am I to expect and what if something goes wrong am I crazy for doing this can someone help me?' type of jitters we are being asked about.

I use to fly alot with my dad, so I was fairly use to being in an airplane, but a few years ago I took a flight to Europe. Nothing really prepared me though for taking off for the first time in a big aircraft--such as a 700 series or an Airbus. I had a window seat and as we where picking up speed down the runway, I watched the wing begin to vibrate--scary thing to see, though I quickly realized its normal! The landing was a bit rough (we dropped the last 100 feet like a rock), but we all cheered and some of us even did the hands up thing like on a roller coaster....

Of course, this does not help you much in getting over the jitters.

You can start by playing games in the airport as you wait. Look at people and see if you can find those who are nervous about flying (they would usually be looking nervously at the flight schedules, cluching their tickets as if they would die when they let go, and moving often in their chairs or walking alot). When you get on the plane, think of it as getting on a roller-coaster ride. It is something to look forward to, even though it makes you neverous! Or, you could dope yourself up--which is not a bad idea of you have motion sickness!

Once you pass the take off stage, most people are over their nervousness and jitters... and once you get one flight down, the jitters are pretty much gone....

[Guest yod]

1. - Remember that many thousands of people take off and land every day. It is perhaps THE safest method of travel.

2 - Get a portable DVD player or laptop and bring a few "happy" DVD movies to watch and maybe a few snacks, too.

3 - The landing gear makes a horrible noise when they open the hatches before you land. Expect it to freak you out a little if you aren't used to it. But don't worry....it MUST do that to land.

4 - The pilot will try to avoid flying in a windstream that is turbulent but every now and again, your plane will go into a windstream that shakes the plane a little. Don't worry...it's normal.

5 - chewing gum is good for pressure on your ears. Younger people have more of a problem with that as you take off and land.

6 - Flying is fun! (repeat that statement a thousand times)

I fly every week. It's not a big deal and there is nothing to worry about except getting a seat in the middle of 2 large people.

[RGR]

5 - chewing gum is good for pressure on your ears. Younger people have more of a problem with that as you take off and land.

Yeah, just don't put it IN your ears like Jethro did!

[Mongo]

Listen,

Everyone means well with their advice, but I can honestly only stress that you should get the Dramamine. Too often people get on planes the first time and have bad experiences. This is ultimately what led me to never being able to fly (yeah, I survived it, but I had never flown and I was very giddy about flying, but I had no idea that it would bother me until 20k feet up and in mid flight I could no longer handle it).

Look at it this way - If you at least take Dramamine the night before, it should help you enough that if you need to take another mid flight you can.

The part I like about flying is the take off and landing. I ride motorcycles, japanese fast ones that launch off the line and hit the quarter mile in 10 seconds. For me, the take off is like that. 0- "Weeeee!" in seconds. And when you drag race, you have to stop, and that's fun too. Slowing down from 133mph in 12 seconds is like landing the plane, except the plane is a lot nicer slow down. You feel the braking and you can feel it when they deflect the exhaust to backwash and slow the plane.

Overall, flying is exciting. The plane rumbles to the strip and then you sit there for a few seconds. Then the pilot says, "Here we go folks" (or all the Continental pilots I flew with did) and you start rolling slowly. Then you hear the engines begin to really scream and you feel the g-force start to hit you and push you back slightly and then...

Its over... Wheels are off the ground and all you feel is smooth.

Its fun, really. And its safer to a degree. I could tell you of adventures that might scare you, but hey! I lived, right? Take the Dramamine and enjoy the flight. If it gets rough, take another and go to sleep. They will wake you - trust me.

We all want you to be safe and have fun.

Oh yeah, and I need a cheesecake since you're going out.

Weeee!