Fear of Heights - How to overcome?

[aherrera5]

I am sorry if this is in the wrong section but I couldnt find anywhere to ask this question.

My whole life i have been afraid of heights, I have never had to be in an airplane so I never really worried about it. Last couple of years (I'm 23 now) I have found myself avoiding situations where I'd have to be in an airplane because of my fear. I am realizing that this fear is turning more into a phobia and I REALLY want to get over this.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend any books or teaching that will help me with my fear. I have been praying alot about this lately because I dont want it to control my life any longer.

Thanks in advance!

 

[DD2008]

Ride a Farris wheel until you start to feel comfortable. Look down alot and get accustomed to it.

I got over my fear when I was younger by working on CCTV cameras 50ft in the air on the side of a busy highway in a bucket truck.

 

[aherrera5]

Thanks for the reply. There's no Farris Wheels by where I live but I get your idea. My thing is, I am afraid of having a panic attack when i find my self in heights.

 

[pgp_protector]

I hate Farris Wheels (They move way too slow for my comfort)
I've got no problems flying though.

As for heights, I'll kindly step away from the edge now, but if you find a solution, Please let me know

 

[DD2008]

Thanks for the reply. There's no Farris Wheels by where I live but I get your idea. My thing is, I am afraid of having a panic attack when i find my self in heights.

Stop being afraid of dying and it won't be so bad. Have you read this book?



Amazon.com: A Godward Life: Savoring the Supremacy of God in All of Life (9781576738399): John Piper: Books

It has a great essay on "to die is to gain" in it that is edifying.

 

[aherrera5]

Thanks for the book... no i havnt read it, but I will check it out.

 

[JohnDB]

Hey,
Your fear is a real one...not a misplaced one either.

from your point of view you are in a hollow metal tube at thirty thousand feet in the sky going at somewhere along three hundred miles an hour...

with someone you don't even know driving the thing...

Makes perfect sense to me...even if the others don't get it and think you need salvation to get over your fear.

I would say that facing this demon isn't neccesarily going to fix the situation.

It is about trust usually. letting someone else drive your car without and with you around town.

It is a good place to start...much better than a ferris wheel.

Then the laws of physics can start applying more normally over time in your head...such as building a scale model RC aircraft. (I know it is a guy thing but try it anyway)

When that thing goes to a flying...and it is something that you built...you begin to lose your fear so much of flying yourself.

Me?
I don't like to get high...I have a real lack of respect for heights. I always have to have a ground person telling me not to step there as there isn't anything there to step on...or else I will fall. But sometimes neccesity is the mother of invention.

 

[aherrera5]

Hey,
Your fear is a real one...not a misplaced one either.

from your point of view you are in a hollow metal tube at thirty thousand feet in the sky going at somewhere along three hundred miles an hour...

with someone you don't even know driving the thing...

Makes perfect sense to me...even if the others don't get it and think you need salvation to get over your fear.

I would say that facing this demon isn't neccesarily going to fix the situation.

It is about trust usually. letting someone else drive your car without and with you around town.

It is a good place to start...much better than a ferris wheel.

Then the laws of physics can start applying more normally over time in your head...such as building a scale model RC aircraft. (I know it is a guy thing but try it anyway)

When that thing goes to a flying...and it is something that you built...you begin to lose your fear so much of flying yourself.

Me?
I don't like to get high...I have a real lack of respect for heights. I always have to have a ground person telling me not to step there as there isn't anything there to step on...or else I will fall. But sometimes neccesity is the mother of invention.

Thanks alot for your suggestions, those were actually really good ideas. I'm gonna try both of them out. Thanks again for the replies

 

[98cwitr]

I am sorry if this is in the wrong section but I couldnt find anywhere to ask this question.

My whole life i have been afraid of heights, I have never had to be in an airplane so I never really worried about it. Last couple of years (I'm 23 now) I have found myself avoiding situations where I'd have to be in an airplane because of my fear. I am realizing that this fear is turning more into a phobia and I REALLY want to get over this.

I was wondering if anyone could recommend any books or teaching that will help me with my fear. I have been praying alot about this lately because I dont want it to control my life any longer.

Thanks in advance!

honestly, I had the same problem...so I went sky diving...true story.

 

[TimRout]

It might cost a couple of bucks, but you could try going down to your local municipal airport and taking a few lessons on a flight simulator. That way you're firmly on the ground, yet can allow yourself to experience the illusion of height.

 

[LiturgyInDMinor]

Are you scared of heights or are you really scared of falling?
I mean this seriously because there is a difference.

 

[98cwitr]

i used to feel very dizzy at height...this physical manifestation of my fear was from the height itself, then it felt like I was going to fall, which amplified the fear that was already there.

 

[aherrera5]

i used to feel very dizzy at height...this physical manifestation of my fear was from the height itself, then it felt like I was going to fall, which amplified the fear that was already there.

yea same here. I'll try looking down from a 8 story building and just start get really nervous, like if I see my self falling

 

[dmart]

I'm afraid of falling, I always fall in my dreams I guess the anxiousness of the feeling of about to hit the ground is just so painful.

 

[LiturgyInDMinor]

Same here, but I used to travel 50 weeks of the year so I was on a plane every Monday, and Friday.
I always wanted a window seat...and LOVED looking right out of the window and down as we took off and landed.
No fear there. I'm weird. haha

 

[BrokenWanderer]

I can understand a fear of falling from heights, as I've fallen from a second story. Ironically, since the building I was standing on I was helping construct, I had plenty of framework to grab onto. Rather amusingly, being just a little over 6 feet tall, this put me just inches above the ground, where otherwise I could have slammed something other than my side against the framework.

I can understand fear of falling, because my reason for fear of falling is justified in the fact that I've fallen before, and it hurts a lot. Don't try it

 

[CDROIx]

do what you are afraid of,go up on high cliffs or something,if you do it enough,you won't be afraid of hights.