Dealing with anxiety before flying

Some anxiety is NORMAL. You have been away from it for a long time, you doubt your abilities. It will all come back. A certain amount of anxiety can be healthy and keep you focused and on your toes. But if you go to medical person such as a psychiatrist, their first course of action is to prescribe some medication and you'll really screw up your medical renewal. Sorry If I offend any psychiatrists who might read this, but I speak from experience with close friends. A lot of these medications are VERY hard to come off from too. Not to mention the $150+ every couple of weeks to get your prescriptions renewed, which you'd be better off spending on flying, with a friend if necessary. Just get back into the environment.
After my first solo, I didn't really believe I could really do this. So every flight I took off and went around the pattern just once, landed and told myself; there you can do it - now go off and practice something else.

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Originally Posted by wtmurrell

I am a PPL that has returned to flying after a 40 year absence.

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first off, what's a PPL? you don't have a license, you hold a CERTIFICATE that PROVES you met the requirements to aviate in the public domain without danger to others. proves. not guesses at. proves.

second, your instructor was milking a cash cow if you took 20 hours to get back in the saddle. heck 20 is enough to prove up on a sport pilot certificate!

third, if you laid off for forty years after your cert, you must be at least 57 yo. geez, guy, don't worry about proving yourself to others. either do it or don't, you don't need to prove anything any more.

now sign out, go out to the airport, and solo the darn thing. or go have a margarita. enjoy yourself! just don't do them in reverse order, ok?

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Originally Posted by wtmurrell

I am a PPL that has returned to flying after a 40 year absence. I've spent about 20 hrs with an instructor getting back into the air and passed my BFR. I love flying and desparately want to continue but I can't seem to get the nerve to fly on my own. Any thoughts or suggestions for coping for pushing through the anxiety I experience before flying? Has anyone had that sort of experience where they went through a period that you found it very panic inducing to try to fly and how did you get through it?

Thanks for your input.

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I'm curious. Does the other person have to be a pilot? I mean, does the anxiety come from you not having a safety net or from being alone?

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Originally Posted by turtle

I'm curious. Does the other person have to be a pilot? I mean, does the anxiety come from you not having a safety net or from being alone?

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If he's having issues serious enough to keep him on the ground, the last thing I would recommend is taking along a non-pilot rated passenger just for company. As much as I often seem to be the "wet blanket" of the forum when it comes to safety side of things, think about what happens if he has a panic attack while flying and simply has his wife or another non-pilot along for the ride. Instead of one potential victim, you now have two.

I think we should be less concerned about his maintaining his medical and more concerned about whether he is actually fit to fly and his emotional well-being. I get butterflies before flying (regardless of the nature of the flight) but it's not sufficient enough to keep me on the ground. If the person in question actually has a serious enough anxiety disorder that it's making him more or less non-fuctional when it comes to flying, then he has no business flying. Sure we'd be losing one of our own, but I'd much rather have him alive than have to hear about him and his passenger(s) being removed from a smoking hole because he froze up at the controls. If pilots were better at grounding themselves (and at not trying to talk each other into stopping flying when something that impairs their fitness) when they are not healthy enough to fly, we probably wouldn't have the necessity for the medical certification system we now have in place due to the small number of crashes that are due to pilot incapacitation but that's a discussion for another thread.

First off, hats off for seeking in-depth training after being away from flying so long. And a nod for understanding that training is about skill and comfort, not time.

Second, on the issue at hand, I'd split the middle.

Fly with another pilot. Not necessarily a CFI, but a qualified pilot.

I'll agree with Steve that if you're not confident enough to fly solo you shouldn't. It's about personal minimums; some have very narrow minimums - as a low-hour pilot mine are very conservative and "wimpy" compared to most.

I don't care what anyone might say as I stand at the door to the ramp drinking coffee with my lower lip stuck out because the crosswind is too great, the ceiling too low, or any number of disagreeable events that keep me on the ground - it's my soft pink flesh on the line, not theirs!

Find a pilot "flight buddy." Treat it as a social requirement. "It's no fun to fly by myself." If you feel uncomfortable, offer to let the other guy land; trust me, 99.98% of us would rather be doing it ourselves when in the right seat.

If you get to where you're confident enough to go solo, fly a First Solo - two touch and goes and a full stop. The next time stay in the local area and do the same thing on return, keeping the flight down to about an hour.

I'd also suggest you have someone photograph one of your landings, solo or not. It's very instructive! I was kind of frowny after a series of touch-and-goes, as I thought my three pointers were less than where I wanted them to be; then I saw what a "crappy" landing really looked like:

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Not shabby at all - I was just being too harsh a judge.

Almost all of my flying has been in the local area practing basic stuff (ground reference, slow flight, turns and stuff) and pattern work in roughly hourly increments. So while I only have 45 hours total time, I have 250 landings - and still need more practice to get them where I want them.

This is for two reasons. First, renting a plane is expensive and an hour in the Champ is ten hours on the clock at work. I've got a wife, kid, and partially assembled aircraft at home and they all need to be fed on a regular basis. Second, straight and level flight is not where I need improvement; I pick one or two things to work on each flight and do them to build proficiency.

So even though I'm a fully qualified Sport Pilot (got my ticket in 28 hours) my actual flight performance profile fits more like a student's. The few grins I get from my peers on the ground make no never mind; I've earned every hour inked on the pages, and enjoyed almost every one of them.

Anyhow, don't put yourself in harm's way and don't beat yourself up. Accept limitations and adapt to them.

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Originally Posted by cdrmuetzel@juno.com

first off, what's a PPL? you don't have a license, you hold a CERTIFICATE that PROVES you met the requirements to aviate in the public domain without danger to others. proves. not guesses at. proves.second, your instructor was milking a cash cow if you took 20 hours to get back in the saddle. heck 20 is enough to prove up on a sport pilot certificate!third, if you laid off for forty years after your cert, you must be at least 57 yo. geez, guy, don't worry about proving yourself to others. either do it or don't, you don't need to prove anything any more. now sign out, go out to the airport, and solo the darn thing. or go have a margarita. enjoy yourself! just don't do them in reverse order, ok?

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Wait a second. I've done "long layoff " flight reviews. I'm also very much in a position where I don't need the money to instruct (my accountant has suggested that I would make money by not instructing). They can take up to 20 hours. Remember, unlike a new rating or certificate, there's only one signature required for the pilot to go out and exercise the maximum privileges of the certificate they possess. I don't sign any flight review unless both parties agree that the ground knowledge and flying was at least up to standard (FWIW, most of my flight reviews are in the neighborhood of two - three hours on the ground [of which I bill 80% to account for war stories], and 1.5 in the air, depending on the person's rating, goals, etc.).

Back to the point, I'm going to agree with Steveinindy - I'd rather lose an active pilot than a person. However, I don't think that needs to be the case here. I've seen this before; the way to handle this is directly.

To wtmurrell: Please see my PM. Yes, sometimes diving into the deep end, as it were, might work. Or, it can lead to anxiety that is so great that you'll walk away. My signature line below is a "serious witticism". It's meant as a reminder that if there's something your subconscious perceives as needing your attention, identify it and do something about it. A simple example would be if you're wondering if stopping for fuel might be a good idea, then don't agonize - do it. In your case, I'd venture that there's some unfinished business, in your mind, from the flight review that you got. Work with your instructor to identify that and put it to rest.

Note, this is an area where some CFI's are very uncomfortable, either due to lack of experience or because they're more focused on "nuts and bolts" issues. You might have to seek someone out that can help you work through this.

I'm went through the same scenario as you. My wife is a retired medical research scientist and watches me like a hawk. She worked with doctors who taught doctors how to be doctors.

I asked her "What the h#$% is wrong with me? I used to love flying and now I'm filled with anxiety about flying alone." She told me that as men get older, their testosterone levels drop and that affects not only their sex drive, but their youthful aggressiveness. She said that when guys are young, they take chances (like getting married), driving cars like race car drivers and jumping off high places into unknown waters. After having been around my 16 year son, I have seen what she is talking about first hand. The stuff he does really scares me.

Then I asked "What do I do?". She responded with "Do you want to give up flying?". I replied with a resounding "NO!".

Then she said "Get your a$$ back up in that plane! Fly as much as you can with your friends until you feel that youthful urge to fly alone again. You have fallen off the horse and you need to get back on.".

What you are feeling is perfectly natural and you are exactly where you're supposed to be. Just think about how miserable you would be if someone told you couldn't fly anymore.

FLY, FLY, FLY!

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Originally Posted by Bob Meder

Wait a second. I've done "long layoff " flight reviews....some CFI's are very uncomfortable...might have to seek someone out that can help you work through this.

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Bob, you and Frank and Smitty and Aerco gave wtmurrell some really good advice. i admit my stuff is a bit rough, but it was meant as "tough love". i've only been a CFI since '75 so i still have a lot to learn. that's why when a person i fly with hits a plateau, instead of dusting off the Dairymaster i acknowledge MY limits and get another instructor in the mix. sounds like you do the same.

wt, do what those guys said! go fly! have FUN!

or not. your choice.

Of all the posts, this one best connects the dots for me. I don't think I need a shrink. On the whole, I'm a pretty well adjusted person.

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Originally Posted by SmittysRV

I'm went through the same scenario as you. My wife is a retired medical research scientist and watches me like a hawk. She worked with doctors who taught doctors how to be doctors.

I asked her "What the h#$% is wrong with me? I used to love flying and now I'm filled with anxiety about flying alone." She told me that as men get older, their testosterone levels drop and that affects not only their sex drive, but their youthful aggressiveness. She said that when guys are young, they take chances (like getting married), driving cars like race car drivers and jumping off high places into unknown waters. After having been around my 16 year son, I have seen what she is talking about first hand. The stuff he does really scares me.

Then I asked "What do I do?". She responded with "Do you want to give up flying?". I replied with a resounding "NO!".

Then she said "Get your a$$ back up in that plane! Fly as much as you can with your friends until you feel that youthful urge to fly alone again. You have fallen off the horse and you need to get back on.".

What you are feeling is perfectly natural and you are exactly where you're supposed to be. Just think about how miserable you would be if someone told you couldn't fly anymore.

FLY, FLY, FLY!

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Originally Posted by Floatsflyer

Fair enough. But that leaves you with a bit of a dilemna. Is not dealing with the reality of a medical condition more or less important than the possibility of losing your class 3? What good is your class 3 if you can't solo?

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Welcome to the Catch-22 that is the Third Class Medical. I haven't had any of these issues, but I read about others having these problems over on the AOPA board. It is scary how doctors trying to "do the right thing" effectively end a pilot's ability to fly without realizing it.

For example, a pilot goes to a psychiatrist about anxiety. The doctor wants to do the pilot a favor and "codes" his chart in a way that the pilot's insurance company will pay for the visit. Unfortunately, that "code" sends up red flags at the FAA, and the next thing you know the pilot is paying for a battery of psychological tests (out of his own pocket, insurance won't pay for this) to prove that he is safe to fly.

Or, the pilot goes to a psychiatrist about anxiety. The doctor prescribes an anti-anxiety drug for the pilot to take for a short time until his anxiety subsides. Unfortunately, that drug is on the FAA "no-fly" list, and the pilot can't get a third class medical anymore. Or has to pay a lot of money for unnecessary tests to prove that the need for the drug was only temporary.

Keep in mind two things when seeing a doctor. The FAA has a very antiquated view of mental health issues, so most treatments are going to raise a red flag to the FAA. The second thing the keep in mind when seeing any doctor, is that most doctors are unaware that the FAA has a list of drugs that are not allowed, and could possibly prescribe a drug that will end your flying. Many times there are acceptable substitutes on the list, but the doctor needs to be aware of what those are.

Having said all that, it is better for someone to be healthy than to fly. Still go to the doctor, and if the choice is take a medicine that will save your life or fly, take the medicine.