Beating Stress

Relax, take a deep breath and de-stress. The following tips should help you to enjoy a more relaxed and stress free flight:

Ensure that you get a decent night's sleep before flying, as tiredness can compound stress.

Planning ahead can help avoid many situations which contribute to a stressful journey. Make a note of the connection times for each leg of your journey, i.e. time of flight, time you need to check in (remember this is 2hrs or more prior to flight time for international departures), time you need to leave your house and so on.

Very few people actually work out how long all the legs of their trip will take, leading to a last minute dash, which can only induce stress.

Always leave plenty of time to complete each leg of your journey. Remembering that you will be weighed down with luggage, and that airports are usually large crowded places with a number of stop points (luggage check-in ,immigration etc.) it is vital that you provide additional time to accommodate these possible obstacles.

When waiting at the airport, try to relax your mind by reading a book or magazine, rather than getting wrapped up in any delays or crowds, which may begin to cause nervous energy released as stress.

Dissipate excess energy by taking a brisk walk on the morning of the flight, and whilst at the airport prior to flying.

Avoid alcohol as this will only disorientate and tire you further.

Drink plenty of water the night before and during the day of flying to avoid dehydration.

Take advantage of in-flight entertainment to distract your mind throughout the journey by listening to in-flight music or watching in-flight movies.