Fear of heights and travel

[lg28]

So, my fear of heights has really been interfering with some travel experiences lately. I was in Greece last week, and santorini (the entire island) and the Acropolis in Greece just about did me in. Lol. For example, in santorini I had to close my eyes on the cable car and do massive deep breaths. In oia, I was In a constant state of panic at the views. Which were lovely!

How do you deal with an extreme fear of heights while on vacation? I want to go to Machu Picchu but I'm worried I will have a panic attack or literally turn around. Same with Beijing and the Great Wall of China.

I do see a therapist regularly for anxiety issues but the fear of heights is really starting to interfere with enjoying travel.

[erbear]

I try my best to suck it up and deal (close my eyes on the elevators or cable cars, take deep breaths and baby steps toward the end of stuff). I nearly missed the Eiffel Tower because I was so scared, but I forced myself to do it. Just keep working on it!

[origami]

Someone in my feed posted this on FB today. Maybe it'll help:
www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/how-to-overcome-anxiety/

So you're not ok if you're on the ground and away from the edge, if that ground is high? I get dizzy and anxious in cable cars and near railings/edges/windows of steep/high places. I only do cable cars because the views are worth it. I'll probably always loathe them and sweat buckets while on them. I don't care about being high up, unless I'm at the edge of something steep, because I fear falling and dying. So I stay away from the edge. What exactly are you afraid of/anxious about, say, on the Acropolis?

ETA: I had to leave the top of the Eiffel tower because it was swaying in the wind. I was like NOPE. and after approximately 10 seconds, found the elevators to go down. I missed seeing a proposal because I was hugging the elevator wall. So I get it. I don't regret the fact that I remember nothing about the view because you can appreciate the Eiffel tower on the ground. Like the Washington monument or Statue of Liberty. But Santorini, the Great Wall, the Acropolis... Those you need to overcome the anxiety to appreciate. You can't go to beijing, take a van to BFE hours away, and then be like "nope," without regretting it. As much as Oia sucked for you, imagine how it would feel seeing all the pics of it after the fact, knowing you were right there but didn't see it. It's worth it, right? You should be proud of yourself for powering through. That takes big guts. You can totally do those other places too. Just need to find some things that resonate with you that you can tell yourself, so that you will get through it.

[iammalcolmx]

Aug 26, 2015 2:58:05 GMT -5 origami said:

Someone in my feed posted this on FB today. Maybe it'll help:
www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/how-to-overcome-anxiety/

So you're not ok if you're on the ground and away from the edge, if that ground is high? I get dizzy and anxious in cable cars and near railings/edges/windows of steep/high places. I only do cable cars because the views are worth it.

You should have seen me whimper on this :

[caddywompus]

The best way to deal with your fears and anxiety is to do exposure therapy. Have you tried doing small exercises with exposure to increasingly higher levels? Seeing a Cognitive Behavioral Therapist can really help!

[gtkim]

I'm not afraid of heights, but I'm terrified of falling. I can be up high if I feel secure. I know that might sound odd to some people.

I keep forcing myself to do things, and I might do them very slowly, but I literally "talk" myself through them. There is no logical reason for my anxiety and I keep reminding myself of that.  It isn't easy, but little by little I'm getting through things I would have never even attempted not that long ago.  There are still plenty of things I can't do, but I am making progress.  I'll never forget going to the Duomo in Florence and not being able to look at any of it because of how terrified I was. I'm working to get past that.

[lg28]

origami

I couldn't even go up the Eiffel Tower. I cried having to come down in santorini. But I was happy to be coming down at least. I did go up the Empire State Building about 8 years ago. I lasted 5 minutes.

[lg28]

Aug 26, 2015 9:26:57 GMT -5 gtkim said:

I'm not afraid of heights, but I'm terrified of falling. I can be up high if I feel secure. I know that might sound odd to some people.

I keep forcing myself to do things, and I might do them very slowly, but I literally "talk" myself through them. There is no logical reason for my anxiety and I keep reminding myself of that.  It isn't easy, but little by little I'm getting through things I would have never even attempted not that long ago.  There are still plenty of things I can't do, but I am making progress.  I'll never forget going to the Duomo in Florence and not being able to look at any of it because of how terrified I was. I'm working to get past that.

This sounds like me in Rome about 10 years ago. I missed a lot of cool things because of my fears.

I don't like balconies or even high spaces if it's secure. My "fight or flight" reaction kicks in terribly. Like I avoid any hotels that have lobbies on like the 20tj floor (I'm looking at you, Chicago). It's starting to really impact things I can and cannot do while travelling.

I should try CBT for the height thing specifically. I do EMDR for anxiety in general.

[lg28]

Aug 26, 2015 6:39:04 GMT -5 iammalcolmx said:

Aug 26, 2015 2:58:05 GMT -5 origami said:

Someone in my feed posted this on FB today. Maybe it'll help:
www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/how-to-overcome-anxiety/

So you're not ok if you're on the ground and away from the edge, if that ground is high? I get dizzy and anxious in cable cars and near railings/edges/windows of steep/high places. I only do cable cars because the views are worth it.

You should have seen me whimper on this :

Where is that?!

So I can add it to the list of places I'm never going.

[iammalcolmx]

Aug 26, 2015 12:51:39 GMT -5 lg28 said:

Aug 26, 2015 6:39:04 GMT -5 iammalcolmx said:

You should have seen me whimper on this :

Where is that?!

So I can add it to the list of places I'm never going.

Pão de Açúcar in Rio. The worst part is they all think I am Carioca so they laugh at my extra hard.

[Alyssa]

I'm terrified of heights....and riding on motorcycles and scooters. SE Asia pushed me in those two areas.  I had to cross this rickety old bridge in Laos.  It was made of cracked open bamboo that bent and creaked.  The wire was thin and the whole bridge shook and swayed.  I was almost frozen in fear but I had to power through it because the rest of our group had already crossed.

[Champagne Supernova]

Keep working on it! I too, just sucked it up and deal because I'm already there and there's no way I'm missing out.

I'm not extremely scared of heights but I had to calm myself down a couple of times in Machu Picchu. Just took deep breaths and practically crawled on a couple of flights of stone stairs.

[mrsukyankee]

Yup, I've done this work as a CBT therapist. And it does work. Doesn't mean you won't have a bout or two of minor anxiety (I still do around needles which is my phobia thing I worked on with a CBT therapist), but it won't "rule you" the way it does now.

[lg28]

@sfgal530

We would have our own personal guide! But I still don't think I can do it yet. I've been googling pictures and tne itinerary and my anxiety got provoked just looking at photos. It looks amazing but I know I won't be able to handle it.

I'm starting work on my fesr of heights on Monday with my therapist. I need to get this thing under control!!!!

Have a fabulous trip!

[scout8]

Aug 27, 2015 22:18:12 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

lg28, I saw your post a few days ago and I'm in Machu Picchu right now so wanted to comment - based on your above posts, I would NOT select the Peru trip for your upcoming trip this year, despite the Belmond itinerary being amazing and the hotels being awesome. We spent yesterday and the day prior doing the Sacred Valley (Moray, Chincero, Maras, Pisac, Ollantaytambo, etc.), and the roads to get to / from some of them were a little nerve-wracking for me (and I do not think my fear of heights is as bad as yours, given the way you describe it). We did Machu Picchu today and we're hiking tomorrow, and we can't do most of the more adventurous hikes because I'm just too terrified to do them. Machu Picchu is amazing the but the bus ride up is 25 minutes of switchbacks on narrow, one-way dirt roads with sheer drop-offs, and more than once I was clutching my guide's hand today as we were walking down uneven Inca stairs with "recently added" guard rails as I looked over the side down to the river below. I did it and I don't regret it one bit, but I would encourage you to get some counseling done before coming to MP, because I consider myself pretty okay with heights and this one sent me out of my comfort zone.

That being said, the Belmond trip has been incredible and the Rio Sagrado Hotel is fabulous, so if you can get over your fear of heights I would 110% recommend it. Does the trip include a guide? Does it include tours in the Sacred Valley? What time of year would you be going? All of those would influence my decision about whether or not to go, but we are LOVING it so I would totally recommend it if you can overcome the fear of heights.

The problem with the bus rides isn't just the heights and drop offs, but the fact that many of the bus drivers drive like compete maniacs. I have never been as scared as I was on some of my bus rides in Peru. The worst one was a tour we took of the Sacred Valley. This wasn't even a public bus, but a tourist bus and the guy drove like crazy. After being on that bus all day, we had to get on an overnight bus to Bolivia. I remember standing at the bus station with my H and crying because I didn't want to get on another one. Thankfully, that driver was ok. We ended up switching up our itinerary in Bolivia a bit because I didn't want to get on another bus! 

[marytini]

Aug 28, 2015 16:30:34 GMT -5 scout8 said:

Aug 27, 2015 22:18:12 GMT -5 @sfgal530 said:

lg28, I saw your post a few days ago and I'm in Machu Picchu right now so wanted to comment - based on your above posts, I would NOT select the Peru trip for your upcoming trip this year, despite the Belmond itinerary being amazing and the hotels being awesome. We spent yesterday and the day prior doing the Sacred Valley (Moray, Chincero, Maras, Pisac, Ollantaytambo, etc.), and the roads to get to / from some of them were a little nerve-wracking for me (and I do not think my fear of heights is as bad as yours, given the way you describe it). We did Machu Picchu today and we're hiking tomorrow, and we can't do most of the more adventurous hikes because I'm just too terrified to do them. Machu Picchu is amazing the but the bus ride up is 25 minutes of switchbacks on narrow, one-way dirt roads with sheer drop-offs, and more than once I was clutching my guide's hand today as we were walking down uneven Inca stairs with "recently added" guard rails as I looked over the side down to the river below. I did it and I don't regret it one bit, but I would encourage you to get some counseling done before coming to MP, because I consider myself pretty okay with heights and this one sent me out of my comfort zone.

That being said, the Belmond trip has been incredible and the Rio Sagrado Hotel is fabulous, so if you can get over your fear of heights I would 110% recommend it. Does the trip include a guide? Does it include tours in the Sacred Valley? What time of year would you be going? All of those would influence my decision about whether or not to go, but we are LOVING it so I would totally recommend it if you can overcome the fear of heights.

The problem with the bus rides isn't just the heights and drop offs, but the fact that many of the bus drivers drive like compete maniacs. I have never been as scared as I was on some of my bus rides in Peru. The worst one was a tour we took of the Sacred Valley. This wasn't even a public bus, but a tourist bus and the guy drove like crazy. After being on that bus all day, we had to get on an overnight bus to Bolivia. I remember standing at the bus station with my H and crying because I didn't want to get on another one. Thankfully, that driver was ok. We ended up switching up our itinerary in Bolivia a bit because I didn't want to get on another bus! 

One of my coworkers is Mexican and was telling us how they used to drive to the US/Mexican border, then catch a bus from there when they went to visit family in Mexico. They had to drive through the mountains with steep drop offs too. She says they always took the overnight bus, their reasoning being that since it was so dark, they couldn't see down the steep drop offs, and they would sleep, so in the event the bus did go off the edge, they'd die peacefully in their sleep.   :?
Sorry, this probably doesn't help.