Dealing with anxiety before flying

[Bob Meder]

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?

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.