Medication for Fear of Flying

Tablets for fear of flying: why we prefer not to prescribe them anymore. Patients occasionally ask us to prescribe Diazepam or similar drugs for fear of flying or to help sleep during flights. Prescribing these drugs is no longer recommended for the following reasons: 1. Although plane emergencies are rare, taking Diazepam reduces awareness and reaction times. This may result in you not being able to concentrate, follow instructions or react to save your life if you have to escape quickly. You may also put other people in danger by getting in their way or them having to help you. 2. The use of these drugs can make you sleep in an unnaturally deep non-REM sleep. This means you will not move around as much during natural sleep, so you have a greater risk of developing a blood clot (deep vein thrombosis) in the leg or lungs. Blood clots are very dangerous and can be fatal. This risk is bigger if your flight is longer than 4 hours. 3. Although most people respond to Diazepam with sedation, a small proportion of people experience the opposite side effect and can become aggressive and behave with disinhibition in a way that they would not do ordinarily. This affects everyone’s safety and could lead to you getting into trouble with the law. 4. Diazepam is a controlled drug in the UK. National Prescribing Guidelines followed by doctors and nurses say that use to treat short term ‘mild’ anxiety is inappropriate. They are only to be used short term for a ‘crisis in generalised anxiety’. If you are having such a crisis you are not likely to be fit to fly. Fear of flying is not a generalised anxiety disorder, if you feel you are suffering from a generalised anxiety disorder you should seek proper care and support for your mental health. 5. Diazepam and similar controlled drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated or you may find yourself in trouble with the police for carrying an illegal substance. 6. Diazepam has a long half-life. This means it stays in your system for a significant time and you may fail random drug testing for sport or employment. 7. It is important to tell your travel insurer about your medical conditions and any medications you take. If not, there is a risk of your insurer not paying if you try to make a claim. We appreciate a fear of flying is a very real and frightening and can also be debilitating. However, there are much better and effective ways of tackling the problem. We recommend instead of medication you try an aviation industry recommended Fear of Flying Courses. These courses are far more effective than diazepam, they have none of the undesirable effects and positive effects of the courses continue after the courses have been completed. Fly And Be Calm is an instant download and comes with a money back guarantee (guarantee does not apply to app versions).6 MP3 tracks which include instructions, the fear removal tool and two hypnotic tracks. The least expensive option, takes very little time, works on the root course of your problem. If you are not 100% happy you can get a full refund. https://flyandbecalm.co.uk Easy Jet www.fearlessflyer.easyjet.com British Airways https://ww.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/travel-assistance/flying?with-confidence Virgin Atlantic https://www.flyingwithoutfear.co.uk