Actress Jennifer Aniston has shared that she harbored an “extreme fear” of flying.
However, in a new interview with Travel + Leisure, Aniston, who is known for enjoying vacations to beach destinations, detailed how she overcame it.
“I have an extreme fear of flying,” she told the publication.
According to Travel + Leisure, Aniston “said she somehow fell into the habit of tapping the outside of the aircraft with her right palm and stepping onto the plane with her right foot.”
Aniston also revealed that she would like to visit Japan and the Maldives, which are two destinations where she has never been, and she said she prefers aisle to window seats when she flies.
According to Cleveland Clinic, Aniston’s fear of flying is not very unusual.
“Aerophobia is a fear of flying. It’s very common, affecting more than 25 million adults in the U.S. Psychotherapy can usually help people overcome their fear and fly without extreme anxiety or panic attacks,” the site reported.
“Aerophobia is an extreme fear of flying in an airplane. People with aerophobia may be scared about different aspects of flying, such as take-off, landing or getting locked in the plane. You might know that your fear is irrational — statistics show that air travel has the lowest death rates among other forms of transportation — but you can’t reason your way out of the anxiety. Another name for this condition is aviophobia,” it says.
Jennifer Aniston Says She Adapted Her Flying Technique
However, Aniston also shared that she altered that technique for the better.
“But I have been doing some hypnosis lately, and one of the requirements is to remove all of those superstitions,” she said to the publication.
“I have not been doing the right hand, right foot—and now it’s shockingly good!”
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Jennifer AnistonGetty
US actress Jennifer Aniston arrives for the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild awards
Aniston uses other techniques to break her fear of flying.
“Plugging into a good meditation can get you through,” she told Travel + Leisure, adding that she also gets up to walk and stretch.
However, there’s one habit she hasn’t quite conquered, she told the publication.
“I’ve been trying so hard to become an under-packer because I am notoriously an over-packer,” Aniston said in the interview. “You just don’t know where you’re going to be on a certain day, or what mood you’re going to be in.”
She explained, though, that she’s very organized when she travels, adding, “I put all my T shirts in, then all my underwear, bras, socks, workout stuff, and they just stack on top of each other, which really helps you out.”
