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Original poster

Valium for fear of flying ?

87 replies

mabel12345 · 11/03/2022 21:17

I’ve always been scared of flying and I think it recently got worse. I always self medicated with alcohol and usually had way too much ending up being embarrassing 🤦🏼‍♀️ I recently had a baby and I can’t drink while flying anymore so I’m planning to ring my GP and ask for Valium. Has anyone got any experience with flying on Valium? I’m going to add that I am scared of crashing not claustrophobic or anything else, will it still help?

OP posts:
drawingpad · 12/03/2022 08:59

If your airline finds out you have taken this medication, you will find the crew may refuse you boarding.

It is commonly prescribed for flying anxiety, what on earth are you talking about Confused

Crazycatlady83 · 12/03/2022 08:59

@notimagain but that's not the point is it? If the OP (and others on this thread) are so out of it they sleep, they are a danger to themselves. Just because they can "get on the flight" all fine and dandy, and then pop the pill, doesn't mean they should! I agree, no aircraft is going to turn around but that doesn't make it a sensible decision.

Turn up at the aircraft door looking drugged up to the eyeballs, is a different matter!

This isn't to mention that, if a Dr prescribes you something that purposefully knocks you out, you then can't react in a emergency, they will be liable. Drs are becoming more aware of this and the airlines policies, and not prescribing.

74MyrnaHay · 12/03/2022 09:19

This isn't to mention that, if a Dr prescribes you something that purposefully knocks you out, you then can't react in a emergency, they will be liable.

Is there any legal precedent for this in the UK?

mowly77 · 12/03/2022 09:42

@ThisisMax Biscuit

notimagain · 12/03/2022 10:04

@Crazycatlady83

I was specifically answering the claims that if an airline finds out a passenger was prescribed “ that medication” they would or could be denied boarding…that’s nonsense.

It’s not completely unknown for crew to find passengers hard to rouse after landing, for reasons various, and we certainly don’t live in a world where all passengers start bright eyed and busy tailed throughout all flights. I really don’t think we should be singling out those who take Valium or similar for special attention or sanction.

All I would suggest is if people know they are going to be knocking themselves out with whatever is their medication of choice that they choose a window seat and not one in an exit row…..

Weepingwillows12 · 12/03/2022 10:18

My understanding was doctors shouldn't prescribe diazepam or sedatives for flying because it makes you drowsy so less able to react if there was an emergency, causes increased risk of DVT and sometimes in very limited cases has side effects of agitation or aggression which is not helpful on a plane. That's a few years back when I asked for some so not saying it's current advice bit all made sense to me at the time.

shinynewapple22 · 12/03/2022 10:53

There are some totally weird and OTT responses on this thread . There's a huge difference between taking 2 mg of diazepam to take the edge off your anxiety and taking enough tablets to knock yourself out with it .

Similar to there being a difference between ordering a miniature G&T from the inflight catering to knocking back your entire litre of duty free .......

Canigooutyet · 12/03/2022 11:12

A quick google shows that a number of nhs gps are no longer prescribing these meds for air travel.

If op is breast feeding or has a number of health issues, diazepam will not be prescribed

www.nhs.uk/medicines/diazepam/who-can-and-cannot-take-diazepam/

MarmiteCoriander · 12/03/2022 11:13

For those needing 10mg to relax, have either built up such a tolerance over time or just built/metabolise differently.

I had 1mg once for a neck strain and slept for 12hrs! Then woke up drowsy and groggy the rest of the day. Never again!

PlinkPlankFirstManc · 12/03/2022 11:31

I had 1mg once for a neck strain and slept for 12hrs!

I find that incredible. I have 2mg tablets and barely notice them tbh. I take valium once or twice a month. 1mg would be like taking a paracetamol.

nearlyspringyay · 12/03/2022 11:33

If the worst happened and want my faculties to try and save my kids. Took Mogadon for a long haul flight and would never ever do it again

RandomDent · 12/03/2022 11:37

This is only anecdote of course, but I found that the distraction of looking after my kids on the plane took away my own anxiety!
Also beta blockers might be better. Much less drowsiness.

PlinkPlankFirstManc · 12/03/2022 11:39

I wonder if some of you realise the level of anxiety some of us have. Distractions and beta blockers do not cut it for me. In the midst of an anxiety attack I feel like I am going to die.

RandomDent · 12/03/2022 11:42

@PlinkPlankFirstManc

I wonder if some of you realise the level of anxiety some of us have. Distractions and beta blockers do not cut it for me. In the midst of an anxiety attack I feel like I am going to die.
No, of course we don’t because our own levels of anxiety are completely individual to us. But we are sharing things that worked (or didn’t) for us. It might work for someone reading this.
NotquitewhatImeant · 12/03/2022 11:48

Some really over the top responses here. No cabin crew won’t refuse to let you board, no SS won’t take your kids away….

I have been prescribed diazepam (Valium) for fear of flying following a scary incident on a plane and , having done cbt etc before. It helps a lot and certainly doesn’t leave me incapable of functioning safely or looking after the kids. The opposite, it turns me from a nervous wreck to someone able to function. The GP suggested I took one tablet (2mg) in an evening to see if how it affected me before using it on a flight.

Canigooutyet · 12/03/2022 11:51

@Namechange671

Nice guidelines state that diazepam can be prescribed for anxiety and fear of flying causes huge anxiety so those suggesting the op ought to go private are being pretty high handed. How is anxiety that someone may suffer due to say, stress in their life, more worthy than someone else suffering anxiety leading up to a holiday knowing how scared they will feel on a plane.
Gps are reluctant because of guidelines for prescribing medications. And NICE have also updated their guidelines

According to the prescribing guidelines doctors follow (British National Formulary) diazepam is contraindicated (not allowed) in treating phobic states.[i] It also states that “the use of benzodiazepines to treat short-term ‘mild’ anxiety is inappropriate.”[ii] Your doctor would be taking a significant legal risk by prescribing against these guidelines. They are only licensed short term for a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health and not going on a flight.

NICE guidelines suggest that medication should not be used for mild and self-limiting mental health disorders[iii]. In more significant anxiety related states, benzodiazepines, sedating antihistamines or antipsychotics should not be prescribed. Benzodiazepines are only advised for the short term use for a crisis in generalised anxiety disorder in which case they are not fit to fly. Fear of flying in isolation is not a generalised anxiety disorder.

PlinkPlankFirstManc · 12/03/2022 11:52

I suspect how much diazepam affects you is going to be proportionate to the level of anxiety you have. If I'm really bad I need 10mg, I wouldn't even notice 2mg.

If I am normal-bad (that's pretty much every day for me), I get by on 3x40mg propranalol and I function well on that.

74MyrnaHay · 12/03/2022 12:08

@Canigooutyet

Could you link your source please?

Tequilamockinbird · 12/03/2022 12:10

I've been prescribed diazepam by the GP for years for flying. The last few times I'd had to pay for a private prescription as they wouldn't prescribe on NHS (which was no problem for me).

However the last time we went away (summer 2021), the GP refused to prescribe it saying that the rules had changed and GPs now weren't allowed to prescribe it for flying. She did give me some extra beta blockers though, which didn't really have the same effect but got me through.

sharpenyourknives · 12/03/2022 12:21

My gp prescribe diazepam and propranolol for me. I take one propranolol and 2-3 2mg diazepam. This combination works well for me. Previously I was so anxious before a flight that I would have diarrhoea.

74MyrnaHay · 12/03/2022 12:21

She did give me some extra beta blockers though, which didn't really have the same effect but got me through.

Oddly, beta-blockers sedate/exhaust me far far more than valium. Beta-blockers knock me flat out! I function just fine on the every few months of dosing valium for a flight.

Soontobe60 · 12/03/2022 12:32

@BankingOnChange

This is not what the NHS is for. Please go to a private GP for this

Yes, how ridiculous to approach an NHS GP for anxiety treatment. They should all go private along with all the other pesky people bothering NHS GP's with their MH issues.

Being afraid to fly is not an illness. For the vast majority of people, flying is a choice. I would not expect a GP to prescribe someone with medication so that they could do something they chose to do. I’m terrified of heights. I wouldn’t expect a GP to give me meds so that I could stand on top of Blackpool Tower.
LindaEllen · 12/03/2022 12:44

@MiniDaffodils

A decent GP would not prescribe Valium for this. Sorry OP.
My GP is very decent and has prescribed it. As have many others. You don't know what you're talking about I'm afraid.
MNHQ
YetAnotherBeckyMumsnet · 12/03/2022 12:49

Hello everyone. Please bear in mind that Mumsnet hasn't checked the qualifications of anyone posting here. If you have medical concerns, please seek medical attention; if you think your problem could be acute, do so immediately. Even qualified doctors can't diagnose over the internet, so do bear that in mind when seeking or giving advice. Thank you.