I’ve been dodging this topic for ages, mostly because I didn’t want to jinx my plans of becoming a nomad — one who can flee Delhi’s chaos whenever the city noise gets too loud.
I’m a nervous flier. It started super randomly when I was 21. Out of nowhere, I developed a completely irrational fear of flying- it felt like an absolute speed breaker to my wanderer at heart, always in-transit personality. I’d probably taken over 50 flights without a second thought. And suddenly, I’m the person nervously sweating and feeling queasy just thinking about boarding a tin-can soaring through the sky.
Everyone around me tried to help. “Flying is statistically the safest mode of travel”. And yup, I get it, but my fear wasn’t really about stats. It was the gut-wrenching clash between facts and fiction.
While everyone else was pumped for vacations, I saw them as days of pure anxiety. People would try to convince me, console me, school me on how ridiculous my fear was. I even did therapy, going through systematic exposure to plane sounds and movements, trying to trick my brain into being chill. But instead of carefree holidays, I ended up skipping trips with friends, missing family vacations, and avoiding work travel.
At this point, my family and boyfriend had all packed their bags and moved out of India. Suddenly, flying wasn’t just an option; it was the only way to be near the people I love. My travels however still consisted of obsessing over weather patterns weeks before a flight, stop eating three days before takeoff, and track the flight path like a hawk for days in advance.
It’s six years later now — I still haven’t conquered the fear. But I’ve learned how to channel it into something a bit more… productive. I have become the person who knows way too much about the best planes, the quietest planes, the safest planes, and the airlines with the comfiest seats. I get into pre-flight briefings and turbulence reports like it’s my job (and also my passion project??)
And I am so excited to take you on this flight from fear to passion.