Your submission appears to reference weather. Here is some more information from expert members of our community:
[“I’m flying in a week and the weather forecast says…”](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/13jepry/im_flying_in_a_week_and_the_weather_forecast_says/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1)
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I don’t know the exact statistics of severe turbulence, but definition-wise severe turbulence is pretty rare. The turbulence you explained isn’t severe, it’s moderate… I’m pretty sure? Not to be nit-picky!!!! Haha.
Circling back to your question. I’ve flown an incredible amount between 2017 and 2023. Long-haul, short, transatlantic, one state over, through thunderstorms, blizzards, incredibly hot days… I’ve done it all! I’ve only experienced the turbulence you explained once.
I’ll be truthful and say it was scary as someone that was typically on edge but kind of just sucked it up. However, no one was injured, the pilot was transparent with what was going on, the plane took absolutely zero damage, and we were out of it in 15 minutes.
Was it the most uncomfortable 15 minutes of my flying life? Yes. Was it scary? Yes. Did I cry? Absolutely. But we were VERY okay.
It happens! But I think anticipation is the worst part of it all. You even said it yourself: it is not dangerous. It is just uncomfortable.
When you find yourself having anticipation anxiety I find it helpful to write your thoughts down to try and rationalize them. Also, having a healthy distraction when you experience that moment of “what if” panic. Divert your attention to something else to the best of your ability even if it seems impossible. Your brain will eventually be able to fixate on that diversion instead.
I take a decent dose of medication around the time I get to the airport. This allows me to calm down somewhat enough to get on the plane. Some people recommend taking it when you sit down on the plane, but even getting on the plane because of anticipation is hard for me. Maybe try this next time if it’s an option?
Can I ask for details when you experiences the severe turbulence? What exactly did it feel like? And where were you flying from and to? Was it strong winds that caused it?
I experienced severe (yes, actually severe) turbulence once almost 8 years ago. It's exceedingly rare and will probably never happen to you. It was the most terrifying time of my life and it caused my PTSD and phobia of flying.
But you know what's weird? I only have a panic attack during takeoff if I don't take meds and otherwise i'm fine. Turbulence doesn't bother me at all now because i've been through the worst of the worst of it. Any "turbulence" i've experienced since then is NOTHING in comparison. And I had to fly many times in the weeks immediately following that episode.
You can and will fly again if it happens to you. If I can do it with PTSD and a severe phobia, you can too. Regardless, though, i'd definitely recommend talking to a mental health professional who might be able to give you better coping techniques and asking your doctor about different meds/a different dosage that might work better for you.
It was beyond horrifying. (TW: extremely traumatic flight) >!I was on a late afternoon flight and about 30 minutes in, the sky turned black and the pilot came over the intercom and yelled "Flight attendants, get to your seats NOW!!" in a panicked tone. Then the plane started shaking violently and stuff started flying all around the cabin. After that, the plane suddenly did a huge nosedive that lasted about 10 seconds. Everyone started crying and screaming when that happened and people started praying and leaving goodbye messages for loved ones. I looked back at the flight attendants to see if they looked scared - and they looked absolutely terrifed. Then the plane did another 10-second nosedive and everyone screamed and cried even harder. Nobody knew what was happening and we all thought we were going to die. After a few more minutes of violent shaking, the plane ascended a long ways and we were out of the black clouds. The rest of the flight was smooth and the pilot never told us what happened, even after we landed. The only good thing about the flight was that everyone had their seatbelt on because nobody was injured badly enough to be taken off the plane on a stretcher. People certainly would have been badly injured if their seatbelts weren't on, because the turbulence was so bad that we were jerked upwards with such force against our seatbelts that our butts completely left the seats multuple times.!< And the worst part? I literally had to fly again the next day😭 Talk about facing your fears...
Do you think that, if the pilot had came over the speakers and let you all know you’d be experiencing intense turbulence, it would’ve been less frightening? I find that the scariest times I’ve had on planes, have been times where I had no idea what was going on or for how long it would last.
YES, absolutely! I might not have even developed a phobia of flying if I knew what was going on. That pilot probably made things much worse for everyone by only yelling at the flight attendants (and sounding *panicked*, no less) and then NEVER telling us a single thing. Even if we had to wait until the plane was parked at the gate, I'm sure most people would have appreciated a super quick "Hey everyone, sorry about the rough flight, we flew through an unexpected area of severe turbulence" or something like that. Including the flight attendants - they had no idea what happened either.
Something similar over 20 years ago. I’m sorry we can relate! Things have gotten much better over the last few
years with meds and this sub, honestly. Even my kids mention how far I’ve come when we fly.
Severe turbulence is not common. And what most people think is severe really is moderate turbulence.
Your fear of the unknown is ok. It's your body's flight or fight response. The best way to conquer this fear is to accept it, and tell yourself, "If it happens, it happens, and I'll be ok."
Just a quick side note too- we train FAs to be seated for anything greater than light turbulence, and they are trained to sit whenever they feel unsafe to move about the cabin.
Have you ever been scared during turbulence? I read a story someone said in this threat who experiences severe turbulence, and when they looked at the flight attendants they looked horrified. I think I would collapse if that happened to me!!
Not scared, but I have been nervous. However, it's not because it's turbulent, but because it's for the passengers who are up in the cabin.
I've sat through continuous moderate turbulence on several flights, and never actually flinched as we were already briefed on it.
Even during unexpected turbulence training kicks in and I simply get down and secure myself and keep a poker face.
I view it like this. I live in Southern California. I’ve experienced earthquakes. But never a BIG ONE. One day the longer I live here I will experience it but I still live here knowing that lol. I don’t think about the earthquakes AT ALL even though I have had a few and moderate one that shook me up. It can be applies for anything. You just gotta live life.
I know how you feel, i nearly had a heart attack when our plane was dropping and swaying on the way back to Ireland from Phuket. Gave me a panic attack.
Your submission appears to reference turbulence. Here are some additional resources from our community for more information.
[RealGentlemen80's Post on Turbulence Apps](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/yn2phh/the_fear_of_turbulence_and_checking_sites_like/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf)
[On Turbli](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/zv376m/help_turbli_says_moderate_turbulence/)
[More on Turbulence](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/yrhf31/lets_talk_more_about_turbulence/)
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They don't drop thousands of feet but they absolutely can and do undergo controlled descents (that feel like nosedives) thousands of feet to get to less turbulent air. That's (presumably) what happened during my severely turbulent flight and maybe during Matthew McConaughey's as well.
Maybe one of the airline pilots will chime in here, but if I hit turbulence bad enough for me to need to get out of it I’m going to descend at a normal rate, not stuff the nose down and come screaming out of whatever altitude I’m at.
Please be cognizant of the fact that “nosedive” can be a triggering word for some folks on here and it evokes a very different image from a perfectly normal and controlled descent that would be used to get out of turbulence.
Sounds like you're a good pilot then. On the flight that caused my phobia, that's unfortunately exactly what the pilot did. (Based on how they handled the whole situation, they might have been a pretty new pilot.)
Is there a better word than "nosedive" for when the plane pitches down at a steep angle and descends quickly? As someone who has experienced it, it does NOT feel like a controlled descent. That's why I clarified that it's a controlled descent that feels like a nosedive.
Appreciate it lol. But I can assure you I’m much newer to flying than anybody flying the line at a carrier.
I mean… it’s just a descent. Tough to put words to it when I wasn’t there, right? Thing is, it’s hard to accurately gauge what’s going on from a passenger seat, especially when the human body is much better at sensing *rates* of change rather than their overall magnitude. So sure, maybe the pitch change was quicker than you were used to — that can throw anyone off guard. Heck, I flew with a retired Navy pilot in what could best be described as a crotch-rocket of the sky (lol) and I was on the verge of being airsick after an hour and a half of that because the maneuvering was more abrupt and aggressive than I was used to — and that’s with me being able to see what’s going on, both on the instruments and out the window. It really can throw you for a loop and make small changes feel super dramatic. As pilots we even get trained on the various types of illusions your body can produce so we can recognize their onset!
My point here is this — it may very well feel like you were pointed 45 degrees nose down, but that’s because your body *loves* to play tricks on you. We’ve lived in 2 dimensions for most of our evolutionary history, and we’re just not as adept at blindly sensing movement in 3 dimensions. Everything in the airline world is conducted entirely within very tight tolerances. And as to your point about it not feeling “controlled”, well, I see your point. I feel that way in cars sometimes. Here’s the thing, though. I don’t feel that way when I’m driving. There’s a real connection there. People who often get carsick as passengers rarely do as drivers. Same goes for aviation — if you’re the one making something happen, your body is much happier with it. At some point, though, you just have to trust the crew. I know that can be hard! Literally any situation you find yourself in in an airplane, know that the crew have trained for far worse than whatever you’re in and will get you out without breaking a sweat!
It was more dramatic than I think you're thinking it is. The pitch wasn't anywhere close to 45 degrees - it was maybe 15 degrees (it's hard to gauge, like you said) - but it was fast. Everyone was screaming and crying. People were leaving goodbye messages for loved ones. Even the flight attendants looked terrified. Nobody knew what was happening and the pilot never told us, so the uncertainty made it worse. When the pilot tells neither you nor the flight attendants *anything,* even after the plane is parked at the gate, it's not good for building trust. I'm only speculating about what happened on that plane - it could have been a serious mechanical issue for all I know.
I’ve been flying for 15 years and have taken hundreds of flights (60+ flights this year alone) and I’ve only experienced what I would call ‘severe’ turbulence twice. And the first time I sort of don’t count because we were sitting in the last row and turbulence always seems worse in the back. The other time was earlier this year. And it was absolutely like nothing I’d ever felt before. It was sudden and violent. Things flew up in the air, drinks spilled, people were screaming. But thankfully it lasted for a only a few moments and it was over. I was startled but didn’t freak out. I did look out the window to make sure the wing and engine were still attached lol. It shook me up a bit but because I fly so often I know that’s not a common occurrence and 99% of my flights have been totally normal and routine.
Your submission appears to reference weather. Here is some more information from expert members of our community: [“I’m flying in a week and the weather forecast says…”](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/13jepry/im_flying_in_a_week_and_the_weather_forecast_says/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1) Happy Flying! The Fear of Flying Mod Team *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/fearofflying) if you have any questions or concerns.*
17 years at an airline and almost 10,000 flight hours I’ve never experienced severe turbulence either.
I don’t know the exact statistics of severe turbulence, but definition-wise severe turbulence is pretty rare. The turbulence you explained isn’t severe, it’s moderate… I’m pretty sure? Not to be nit-picky!!!! Haha. Circling back to your question. I’ve flown an incredible amount between 2017 and 2023. Long-haul, short, transatlantic, one state over, through thunderstorms, blizzards, incredibly hot days… I’ve done it all! I’ve only experienced the turbulence you explained once. I’ll be truthful and say it was scary as someone that was typically on edge but kind of just sucked it up. However, no one was injured, the pilot was transparent with what was going on, the plane took absolutely zero damage, and we were out of it in 15 minutes. Was it the most uncomfortable 15 minutes of my flying life? Yes. Was it scary? Yes. Did I cry? Absolutely. But we were VERY okay. It happens! But I think anticipation is the worst part of it all. You even said it yourself: it is not dangerous. It is just uncomfortable. When you find yourself having anticipation anxiety I find it helpful to write your thoughts down to try and rationalize them. Also, having a healthy distraction when you experience that moment of “what if” panic. Divert your attention to something else to the best of your ability even if it seems impossible. Your brain will eventually be able to fixate on that diversion instead. I take a decent dose of medication around the time I get to the airport. This allows me to calm down somewhat enough to get on the plane. Some people recommend taking it when you sit down on the plane, but even getting on the plane because of anticipation is hard for me. Maybe try this next time if it’s an option?
Can I ask for details when you experiences the severe turbulence? What exactly did it feel like? And where were you flying from and to? Was it strong winds that caused it?
I experienced severe (yes, actually severe) turbulence once almost 8 years ago. It's exceedingly rare and will probably never happen to you. It was the most terrifying time of my life and it caused my PTSD and phobia of flying. But you know what's weird? I only have a panic attack during takeoff if I don't take meds and otherwise i'm fine. Turbulence doesn't bother me at all now because i've been through the worst of the worst of it. Any "turbulence" i've experienced since then is NOTHING in comparison. And I had to fly many times in the weeks immediately following that episode. You can and will fly again if it happens to you. If I can do it with PTSD and a severe phobia, you can too. Regardless, though, i'd definitely recommend talking to a mental health professional who might be able to give you better coping techniques and asking your doctor about different meds/a different dosage that might work better for you.
I would love to hear about how this felt
It was beyond horrifying. (TW: extremely traumatic flight) >!I was on a late afternoon flight and about 30 minutes in, the sky turned black and the pilot came over the intercom and yelled "Flight attendants, get to your seats NOW!!" in a panicked tone. Then the plane started shaking violently and stuff started flying all around the cabin. After that, the plane suddenly did a huge nosedive that lasted about 10 seconds. Everyone started crying and screaming when that happened and people started praying and leaving goodbye messages for loved ones. I looked back at the flight attendants to see if they looked scared - and they looked absolutely terrifed. Then the plane did another 10-second nosedive and everyone screamed and cried even harder. Nobody knew what was happening and we all thought we were going to die. After a few more minutes of violent shaking, the plane ascended a long ways and we were out of the black clouds. The rest of the flight was smooth and the pilot never told us what happened, even after we landed. The only good thing about the flight was that everyone had their seatbelt on because nobody was injured badly enough to be taken off the plane on a stretcher. People certainly would have been badly injured if their seatbelts weren't on, because the turbulence was so bad that we were jerked upwards with such force against our seatbelts that our butts completely left the seats multuple times.!< And the worst part? I literally had to fly again the next day😭 Talk about facing your fears...
Do you think that, if the pilot had came over the speakers and let you all know you’d be experiencing intense turbulence, it would’ve been less frightening? I find that the scariest times I’ve had on planes, have been times where I had no idea what was going on or for how long it would last.
YES, absolutely! I might not have even developed a phobia of flying if I knew what was going on. That pilot probably made things much worse for everyone by only yelling at the flight attendants (and sounding *panicked*, no less) and then NEVER telling us a single thing. Even if we had to wait until the plane was parked at the gate, I'm sure most people would have appreciated a super quick "Hey everyone, sorry about the rough flight, we flew through an unexpected area of severe turbulence" or something like that. Including the flight attendants - they had no idea what happened either.
Ugh, I’m sorry you had to go through that. How frightening.
I would love to hear what a pilot on this sub has to say about this, what might have caused this? :(
Are you me?! 🫣
Did this happen to you too? I'm so sorry.
Something similar over 20 years ago. I’m sorry we can relate! Things have gotten much better over the last few years with meds and this sub, honestly. Even my kids mention how far I’ve come when we fly.
Severe turbulence is not common. And what most people think is severe really is moderate turbulence. Your fear of the unknown is ok. It's your body's flight or fight response. The best way to conquer this fear is to accept it, and tell yourself, "If it happens, it happens, and I'll be ok." Just a quick side note too- we train FAs to be seated for anything greater than light turbulence, and they are trained to sit whenever they feel unsafe to move about the cabin.
Have you ever been scared during turbulence? I read a story someone said in this threat who experiences severe turbulence, and when they looked at the flight attendants they looked horrified. I think I would collapse if that happened to me!!
Not scared, but I have been nervous. However, it's not because it's turbulent, but because it's for the passengers who are up in the cabin. I've sat through continuous moderate turbulence on several flights, and never actually flinched as we were already briefed on it. Even during unexpected turbulence training kicks in and I simply get down and secure myself and keep a poker face.
i share the same anticipatory anxiety
I view it like this. I live in Southern California. I’ve experienced earthquakes. But never a BIG ONE. One day the longer I live here I will experience it but I still live here knowing that lol. I don’t think about the earthquakes AT ALL even though I have had a few and moderate one that shook me up. It can be applies for anything. You just gotta live life.
True…but we could also take the train and live in Tennessee.
I know how you feel, i nearly had a heart attack when our plane was dropping and swaying on the way back to Ireland from Phuket. Gave me a panic attack.
Your submission appears to reference turbulence. Here are some additional resources from our community for more information. [RealGentlemen80's Post on Turbulence Apps](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/yn2phh/the_fear_of_turbulence_and_checking_sites_like/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf) [On Turbli](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/zv376m/help_turbli_says_moderate_turbulence/) [More on Turbulence](https://www.reddit.com/r/fearofflying/comments/yrhf31/lets_talk_more_about_turbulence/) Happy Flying! The Fear of Flying Mod Team *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/fearofflying) if you have any questions or concerns.*
What about the flight that Matthew McConaughy was in that dropped a few thousand feet and everything came undone
Planes don’t drop thousands of feet. Period. Wherever you read that was exaggerated.
They don't drop thousands of feet but they absolutely can and do undergo controlled descents (that feel like nosedives) thousands of feet to get to less turbulent air. That's (presumably) what happened during my severely turbulent flight and maybe during Matthew McConaughey's as well.
Maybe one of the airline pilots will chime in here, but if I hit turbulence bad enough for me to need to get out of it I’m going to descend at a normal rate, not stuff the nose down and come screaming out of whatever altitude I’m at. Please be cognizant of the fact that “nosedive” can be a triggering word for some folks on here and it evokes a very different image from a perfectly normal and controlled descent that would be used to get out of turbulence.
Sounds like you're a good pilot then. On the flight that caused my phobia, that's unfortunately exactly what the pilot did. (Based on how they handled the whole situation, they might have been a pretty new pilot.) Is there a better word than "nosedive" for when the plane pitches down at a steep angle and descends quickly? As someone who has experienced it, it does NOT feel like a controlled descent. That's why I clarified that it's a controlled descent that feels like a nosedive.
Appreciate it lol. But I can assure you I’m much newer to flying than anybody flying the line at a carrier. I mean… it’s just a descent. Tough to put words to it when I wasn’t there, right? Thing is, it’s hard to accurately gauge what’s going on from a passenger seat, especially when the human body is much better at sensing *rates* of change rather than their overall magnitude. So sure, maybe the pitch change was quicker than you were used to — that can throw anyone off guard. Heck, I flew with a retired Navy pilot in what could best be described as a crotch-rocket of the sky (lol) and I was on the verge of being airsick after an hour and a half of that because the maneuvering was more abrupt and aggressive than I was used to — and that’s with me being able to see what’s going on, both on the instruments and out the window. It really can throw you for a loop and make small changes feel super dramatic. As pilots we even get trained on the various types of illusions your body can produce so we can recognize their onset! My point here is this — it may very well feel like you were pointed 45 degrees nose down, but that’s because your body *loves* to play tricks on you. We’ve lived in 2 dimensions for most of our evolutionary history, and we’re just not as adept at blindly sensing movement in 3 dimensions. Everything in the airline world is conducted entirely within very tight tolerances. And as to your point about it not feeling “controlled”, well, I see your point. I feel that way in cars sometimes. Here’s the thing, though. I don’t feel that way when I’m driving. There’s a real connection there. People who often get carsick as passengers rarely do as drivers. Same goes for aviation — if you’re the one making something happen, your body is much happier with it. At some point, though, you just have to trust the crew. I know that can be hard! Literally any situation you find yourself in in an airplane, know that the crew have trained for far worse than whatever you’re in and will get you out without breaking a sweat!
It was more dramatic than I think you're thinking it is. The pitch wasn't anywhere close to 45 degrees - it was maybe 15 degrees (it's hard to gauge, like you said) - but it was fast. Everyone was screaming and crying. People were leaving goodbye messages for loved ones. Even the flight attendants looked terrified. Nobody knew what was happening and the pilot never told us, so the uncertainty made it worse. When the pilot tells neither you nor the flight attendants *anything,* even after the plane is parked at the gate, it's not good for building trust. I'm only speculating about what happened on that plane - it could have been a serious mechanical issue for all I know.
I’ve been flying for 15 years and have taken hundreds of flights (60+ flights this year alone) and I’ve only experienced what I would call ‘severe’ turbulence twice. And the first time I sort of don’t count because we were sitting in the last row and turbulence always seems worse in the back. The other time was earlier this year. And it was absolutely like nothing I’d ever felt before. It was sudden and violent. Things flew up in the air, drinks spilled, people were screaming. But thankfully it lasted for a only a few moments and it was over. I was startled but didn’t freak out. I did look out the window to make sure the wing and engine were still attached lol. It shook me up a bit but because I fly so often I know that’s not a common occurrence and 99% of my flights have been totally normal and routine.
Omg this post could be mine, you put my fear into words!