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Hi all,
Hope you're doing ok.
I have a very long haul flight coming up (England to Australia) and my health anxiety is giving me quite a bit of grief. My doctor has prescribed diazepam to help but I'm wondering if lorazepam is a better option for flying? Does anybody else have experience with the two and could recommend an option?
Thank you
N
Depends on person to person. I find Diazepam removes all anxiety completely for 2-3 hours max then tapers off quite quickly. Lorazepam lowers my anxiety but doesn't completely remove it for 4-6 hours then more slowly tapers off. Have you taken either before?
I'd go with the lorazepam if you can get it. It has a shorter half life, but is effective for about the same length of time. With both do not drink alcohol while taking them.Quote:
Originally Posted by nick1994
Some other tips which might help:
If you haven't taking the benzo before do a trial run a couple of days before the flight to test your reaction and side-effects, if any.
Take the first dose about 1.5 hours before the scheduled take off, unless you're driving, and don't exceed the dose as you don't want to be overly sedated in case of an emergency.
Try and get a window seat so you have something to distract you, also take a book or two for the same reason.
Get a seat as far forward on the plane as you can. Fresh air is usually pumped in at the front and can become stale toward the back, though this varies from model to model and company policy (it uses fuel).
Drink lots of fluids, preferably water. The air in planes is very dry.
Get up occasionally and walk around to get leg muscles working, especially if your older. Feet tend to swell up when sitting for long periods so don't take off your shoes as you may not be able to get them back on.
And most importantly, remember the most dangerous parts of any commercial flight are the drives to and from the airport. Statistically, sitting in an airline seat is safer than in an office seat and far safer than in a car.
And welcome to Oz :)
Thanks so much for that mate, very much appreciated. Great info. I'm 24 and I've taken diazepam before for flights. I also take propranolol as my anxiety is rooted in fears about my heart. Doctor prescribed diazepam to help with that so I can hopefully get some sleep and chill out. Just want to use medication to prevent things escalating to a full blown panic attack.
I'm weird on planes - I have literally no fears about the safety of them (was recently on a flight which had an awfully rough landing, causing 95% of people to scream) but I didn't bat an eyelid. For me, my phobia is having a heart attack or something and dying because I'm isolated in the air. Bit stupid, I know, but it's just the way I seem to be.
I've used diazepam to great effect on a flight before and I felt that it brought me down a level and removed all anxiety for the full duration of the flight. Weird one.
Can't wait to get home - been living in UK for a while but Oz is calling again!
Then, on the principle of not fixing what ain't broke, stick with it.Quote:
Originally Posted by nick1994
Not weird at all. Ime, more than half of nervous flyers aren't scared about crashing, but of being trapped and unable to escape if their mind decides they should, i.e. agoraphobia with, or without health anxiety.Quote:
I'm weird on planes... For me, my phobia is having a heart attack or something and dying because I'm isolated in the air. Bit stupid, I know, but it's just the way I seem to be.
Very understandable. As a survivor of a 46.6° C day :ohmy: earlier this year my advice is to not bother bringing your long johns, you won't need them.Quote:
Oz is calling again