Propranolol for flight anxiety

[Parkermumma07]

has anyone been prescribed propranolol for flight anxiety? If so how well did it work?
I have been prescribed it for the first time and am hoping it is going to make the flight I need to take to attend a funeral bearable.

Following with interest as I too hate flying and have been given propranolol! Used to get diazepam in the past, which worked sort of ok, but I think GPs prefer to prescribe propranolol now.

Propranolol works by slowing your heartbeat when it's beating too fast, this in turn makes you feel less anxious and less panicky - you feel much calmer.

Yes, it's awesome. It's like your brain is telling you to be scared but your body doesn't respond so you calm down quickly. Go for it. Works really well.

Yes, I use them to fly. I get really bad claustrophobia and HATE the bit between getting on the plane, and being strapped in. The thought of it makes me mega stressed all the way to the airport.

I now take it before I leave the house, and I’m super chilled. I even enjoy the flight!

I’m so glad you have all had positive experiences, it m hoping this is going to be a game changer for me and I’ll start to relax a bit more around the whole flying experience

A real game changer! I always take one an hour before travelling to the airport and completely takes the stressy/anxious feeling away, with no side effects

Oo this is good to know. I've tried Xanax and diphenhydramine (just the otc sleeping pills) and they work to an extent but I still have to work really hard to keep myself from going off the rails!

Idk why that message got hidden! Maybe because I mentioned a medication begining with x?! Anyway what I was trying to say was I've tried "x" and also the drowsy antihistamine you can get from boots (sleepeaze) and both work well enough to stop me having a total melt down but I'm definitely not relaxed or happy and have to work pretty hard to keep it together. I'll look into propranolol for next time and see if that's any better..

I love mine - I was getting weekly panic attacks and now just get slightly raised heart rate now and then. It's been amazing and quick to work and no side effects.

My GP prescribed it for me and it worked well. She told me to take one the day before so I knew how it felt and to make sure I was happy with it.

Just out of interest, what is it about flying that you don’t like. Which bit makes you anxious? Perhaps we can give you some other tips too.

Absolutely fantastic stuff. Hadnt been on holiday abroad for over 20 years due to fear of flying and anxiety in general. Managed busy airports and 4 flights in a week, as said by PP you still feel nervous in your head but your body just doesnt react.

Been a game changer for me. I take them if I know I'm going to be doing something that could cause a panic attack and they work.

Sorry to say this but propranolol isn't effective for severe anxiety or panic attacks. All it does is slow down your blood pressure a bit and essentially works via the placebo effect for people with mild to moderate anxiety. It's not addictive and therefore many doctors like to prescribe it. It has no effect on your thinking so if your thoughts start to spiral or you get claustrophic in the plane cabin then a beta blocker has zero effect. For many people, the knowledge that they took a pill against anxiety is sufficient to stop the anxious thoughts so in that sense it does work.

The only medications which work 100% against panic and anxiety are benzos, eg Xanax. They work on many levels, including memory and cognition so you cannot panic even if you actively try to. They also make your memory of the flight shorter and happier so you process the experience differently.

have you personally tried them? I’m just trying to get peoples personal experiences of taking them and wondered if they didn’t work for you.

Thank you
its turbulence that I find really scary, I had a bad experience on a flight a few years ago where the turbulence was horrific. People screaming masks dropped kind of thing.
ive done a flight course and lots of research about turbulence and I know it’s nothing to be overly concerned about but when I’m on the plane I just don’t seem to think rationally at all.

I'm exactly the same. I KNOW that it's not dangerous and planes are designed for this. I actually found the Singapore airlines turbulence incident quite reassuring as it shows that planes can really take a lot! But then I get in a plane and it bumps and I fall to pieces.

I so wish I could go back to how I was before the bad turbulence I was in that caused this fear. It just didn't bother me at all before that.

There are lots of people on here that take propranolol and it works. It is not a placebo. It lowers your heart rate, making you feel chilled.

I was on a tiny plane recently. It took off from a loch, and skimmed over Scottish mountains. 2 propranolol had me enjoying the time of my life.

As mentioned, for me it is the getting on, disliking the enclosure then the seatbelts on till we’ve taken off.

I find distraction helps. I have a little kit with a magazine, a podcast, some roll on relax balm and some Kalm pastilles to chew. I have a mind full colouring book. If you could make yourself a kit, and have it to hand, and as soon as it gets bumpy get it out and concentrate on a ritual, it could be over in a minute.

@User8746422 I have to disagree. I was prescribed it precisely for those reasons (serious anxiety & severe panic attacks) and it helped marvellously.

In reducing one's heart rate, it reduces the physiological stress response which in turn can reduce the psychological one. A reduced physiological stress response also gives the patient the chance to address their thinking and thought cycle. Some patients may need CBT to help with this, but that's the same with any anxiety treatment.

Thank you for your post that sounds really helpful, I’m defiantly going to pack myself a little distraction kit