Fear of Flying Fear of flying is a common problem which often significantly interferes with a person's functioning and mobility. Fear of flying may stem from direct exposure to a difficult flight, it may result from parental modeling or from media accounts of air traffic accidents, or it may be an off-shoot of other anxiety disorders.
Many people seek treatment when new work demands involve flying.
Somtimes the trigger to help-seeking is a planned flight to a desired destination which is being anticipated, not with positive feelings, but with increasing fear. Like most such phobias, fear of flying is generally treatable with a combination of exposure therapy and cognitive behavior modification. Dr. Bath has treated fear of flying with high success rates.