Traveling, as a concept, is a ton of fun. If you’re fortunate enough to be able to afford to take vacations, or even if you travel often for work, it can be incredibly rewarding. The places, people, sights, food, the list goes on with the awesome experiences that come from stepping out of your comfort zone. Not to mention, taking time off is highly beneficial for your health.

But, as fun, as it is to escape everyday life and jet set to a new place, the actual act of traveling and flying itself, can be horrific and trigger anxiety, a sense of dread, panic and, at worst, paralyzing fear in some passengers. Whether it’s the fear of getting to the airport on time, getting your carry-on actually on the flight, having the airport lose your luggage, dealing with a flight delay, or experiencing turbulence (ugh), there are a lot of factors pre, during and post-flight that can cause a rollercoaster of emotions.

For myself, the plane isn’t the only thing skyrocketing during takeoff. Simply put, takeoff is one of my biggest fears in addition to snakes. [As you can imagine, the movie snakes on a plane is my actual nightmare.] During those first few minutes, and any turbulence, my emotions run super high! Despite how much I travel - a lot - I just can’t shake the shakes, tears, grips for dear life, nervous laughs, sweats, you name it. To put it into even more perspective for those that haven’t traveled with me, when traveling alone, I’ve had complete strangers ask me if I was ok, and offer his/her hand to “help” because they felt bad for me. I’m working on it.

In my long quest to overcome this fear, I recently uncovered something that finally *helps,* and I wholeheartedly feel that it is my duty to share it with the world in hopes that I can pay it forward to at least one person who may be reading this article.

Enter: Bose headphones. While I can’t take the credit for this personal discovery, I can thank my wonderful husband for thinking of this for me (and you, whoever needs this too). These headphones have helped me in ways that I couldn’t imagine possible and here’s why: Bose headphones are noise canceling. A.K.A you can say buh-bye to the loud airplane engine noise and any unwelcoming sounds. It’s simple yet glorious and, while I still have sensitivity towards some of the motions, I did find that wearing these headphones has made me calmer on the flight -- especially during takeoff. I would go so far to say that during one takeoff, in particular, I didn’t even realize we were ascending. I vividly remember my husband looking over at me and smiling with relief that I myself found relief and that his arm had the day off from being a permanent stress ball (#mainsqueeze). It was a great day.

So if you’re suffering from flight anxiety and are looking to send your fears on a one-way ticket out of your life, I suggest trying to get your head right with these headphones! The world is a big, beautiful and wondrous place, and you should be excited [not nevervous or stressed] to see it.

Here are some other tips for overcoming flight anxiety:

• Get to know the flight crew.
• Bring something to do that will distract you the entire time on the flight.
• Try applying & breathing in essential oils that help with stress and anxiety.
• It’s all in our minds. Make a conscious effort to focus on the destination. The flight is only a tiny part of the trip/experience.
• Remember to breathe.
• Don’t drink caffeine or sugary drinks pre-flight.
• Try and sit towards the front of the plane as the rear tends to be bumpier.
• Sit in the aisle or window seat as you may find solace in being able to see what’s going on.

How do you prevent flight anxiety? Comment below!