At the gate
How to calm your nerves before a flight: the 30 minutes before boarding
The gate is where the dread peaks, because there is nothing to do but wait. So do something. Eat something small and plain. Fill a water bottle. Walk the length of the terminal once. Sit where you can see the aircraft. In the 10 to 30 minutes before boarding, headphones on and run Prepare Me if you use Dizzout, then three to five minutes of slow breathing with a long exhale. Decide now what you will do if you feel sick on board, so you are not deciding at 30,000 feet.
Airsick when the bumps start? Drug-free sound therapy through any headphones: Prepare Me for the 10 to 30 minutes before, Motion Sickness Relief for once it starts.Starts in your browser · works with any headphones
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Key facts
- Anticipatory nausea peaks in the waiting, and often eases once the trip is under way.
- An empty stomach makes nausea worse. Something small and plain at the gate is better than nothing.
- Dizzout's Prepare Me mode is the same sound session in a quicker form, for the 10 to 30 minutes before a trip you expect to be rough.
- Three to five minutes of slow breathing shifts the body toward its rest state before the motion starts.
- A decision made at the gate about what to do on board is one you will not have to make in turbulence.
The 30 minutes, in order
- 1.30 minutes out. Eat something small and plain if you have not eaten in the last two hours: crackers, a banana, toast. Water, not coffee. Skip the bar.
- 2.25 minutes. Walk the length of the terminal and back. Movement burns off some of the adrenaline and gives you something to do.
- 3.20 minutes. Sit facing the window where you can see your aircraft. Watching it be loaded and fuelled turns an idea into a machine.
- 4.15 minutes. Headphones on. If you use Dizzout, run Prepare Me. This is the window it is built for.
- 5.10 minutes. Slow breathing while the session plays or after it: in through the nose for about four, out through pursed lips for about six. Three to five minutes.
- 6.5 minutes. Decide, in one sentence, what you will do if you feel sick on board: vent, wing, breath, play, crew. Say it to yourself. Then board.
Why the gate is the worst part
Waiting with nothing to do is where anticipatory nausea lives. The body has learned that the announcements and the smell of the terminal mean a flight, and it starts the response early. Expectation then does the rest; among 239 Southern Ocean passengers, expecting to be ill was linked to actually being ill. The list above exists to fill the waiting with actions you have decided in advance. Each one is small. Together they mean you board having already done something.
What to skip at the gate
The bar: alcohol worsens anxiety once it wears off and upsets the inner ear. The big meal: a full stomach is as bad as an empty one. The news feed about aviation: it is not information, it is fuel. Scrolling in general, which gets your eyes used to a screen you will not be able to look at on board. If you want to read, read the pre-flight plan once more and then put the phone away.
The 15-minute step
Stop Motion Sickness Now
Dizzout is drug-free sound therapy through any headphones. Run Prepare Me in the 10 to 30 minutes before boarding, and Motion Sickness Relief from your seat if the bumps get to you, with relief in about 90 seconds. Free to download.
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Questions people ask
What should I do 30 minutes before a flight if I get anxious?
Eat something small, drink water, walk the terminal, sit where you can see the aircraft, run a sound session if you use Dizzout in the 10 to 30 minutes before boarding, do three to five minutes of slow breathing, and decide in one sentence what you will do if you feel sick on board. The plan replaces the waiting.
Should I eat before a flight if I feel sick with nerves?
Yes, something small and plain: crackers, a banana, toast. An empty stomach makes nausea worse, not better, and nerves often mimic hunger. Avoid a big meal, greasy food, coffee and alcohol.
When exactly should I use Prepare Me before boarding?
Any time in the 10 to 30 minutes before boarding. It is the same Dizzout sound session in a quicker form, built for before a trip you expect to be rough. The Trip Planner in the app can remind you so you do not have to watch the clock.
Related
Sources
None of these studies tested Dizzout. They are the general research on anxiety, expectation and breathing.
This content is for general information only and is not medical advice. Dizzout is a wellness app for motion sickness and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any condition, including anxiety. Speak to a doctor if symptoms are severe or persistent, and to a doctor or therapist if fear is stopping you from travelling.