Em is Alex’s anxious friend. Em is an intruder that will be traveling with us. Em gets bigger the more Alex feels worried about flying. Tiny Em helps and protects us. But Big Em can feel overwhelming and does not always tell the truth. Em is your friend that does not like to fly, and you have the power to help it get to where you are traveling to.
What is Anxiety?
Anxiety is an emotion that everybody feels. It helps protect us from danger. For example, your body prepares you for danger by making your heart beat faster so you can run away faster. But when it comes to flying, anxiety makes us think the possible danger is bigger than it really is.
Just like it does in the story, anxiety can turn into a BIG emotion when you travel and that’s okay! Your day does not have to be perfect. When you land, it will go back to being tiny and keep doing its job of helping us and protecting us from danger. This does not mean you are not strong. It just means you are human and have a big heart that feels emotions deeply.
But remember that being brave means that we get on the plane even though we feel scared. You can do this!
Anxiety about flying can look like:
"I prefer the window seat so if the plane shakes I can see out the window and see if something is happening, like if we are just passing through some clouds. I was returning home alone once and I missed my connecting flight at Heathrow airport. There was a time difference from where I was coming that I did not notice so I called a friend to pass the time. I was going to the restroom and passed my gate on the way there. When I got to the gate it said flight closed. I called my husband right away and he told me he would find a solution, but what could he do? He was not there. I frantically called the flight attendant through the glass and she came and explained to me how to get to the airline’s main desk so I could get on another flight. I had to ask her several times to repeat slowly the instructions. I ran to the airport’s main desk and peed myself. You could see wet spots on my light green pants but I did not care at the time. They got me on a flight for the next day but I was so nervous that the airline’s guy had to help me with my phone to book my hotel for the night. He even walked me outside, like I was his daughter, to point me to the hotel’s entrance.”
- woman in her 50s
"Grandma, remember you cannot use high heels on the plane because they will rip the emergency life rafts.”
-Alika, 3 years old
"I am traveling back by myself and I have a 3 hour layover, do you think it is enough?”
-Miriam, 65 years old
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