What I Notice at Our MSP Airport Workshop for Fear of Flying (And Why It Matters)

We just wrapped up our sixth workshop at MSP International Airport for anxious flyers.

And at this point, there are a few things I don’t even wonder about anymore because I see them every single time.

At the start of each workshop, we ask a simple question:

“How many of you are afraid of the plane crashing… versus something else?”

Almost every time, about 70% of people raise their hand for “something else.”

And while that number stands out, what matters more is what comes next.

Because even for the people who do say they’re afraid of the plane crashing, when we start talking more, there’s usually something underneath it.

It’s not just about what they believe to be the “worst case scenario.”.

It’s about the experience of being in it.

The uncertainty.

The lack of control.

The question of, “What if I can’t handle it?”

What Actually Shows Up

From the outside, fear of flying can look very different from person to person.

One person might be worried about turbulence.

Another about feeling trapped.

Another about getting sick on the plane.

Another about panicking and not being able to leave.

But underneath those different fears, there are a few common threads that connect almost everyone in the room.

Uncertainty. Lack of control. And a tendency to underestimate how well you’d actually cope if anxiety showed up.

I see this even in subtle ways.

Someone can look completely calm on the outside but when I check in with them, they’ll say something like, “I’m hanging in there.”

That’s often the reality of anxiety. It’s not always loud or visible…but it’s there.

What Surprises People the Most

One of the things I’ve come to witness each and every time is the shared connection participants feel when they are in a room full of others who get it.

Before the workshop even starts, there’s this moment where people look around are struck by how many people are there because they are struggling with the same fear and anxiety when it comes to flying. 

I’ve had participants share that they felt emotional just seeing how many others experience the same fear.

And as the workshop goes on and people begin talking with each other and that feeling only grows.

Because while the specific fears may be different, the experience of anxiety is incredibly similar.

“What If Being Around Other Anxious People Makes It Worse?”

This is something I don’t always hear out loud but I know people think about it.

There’s often a concern that being around other anxious flyers will make things more intense…
or that the group will somehow feed off each other’s fear.

What I see, over and over again, is the opposite.

People feel more grounded.

More understood.

Less alone.

There’s something powerful about being in an environment where you don’t have to explain yourself.

Where people just get it.

And instead of anxiety escalating, what tends to happen is that people begin to settle into the experience because they’re not carrying it by themselves anymore.

Why This Matters

If your fear of flying feels very specific—like it’s about turbulence, or panic, or getting sick, or the plane itself—it can feel isolating.

Like your fear is different.

Like you’re the only one who reacts this way.

But what I see every time we run this workshop is that, at the core, people are navigating very similar challenges.

Uncertainty. Lack of control. And the belief that they won’t be able to handle what they feel.

And those are things that can actually be worked with.

Not by eliminating anxiety completely—but by changing how you relate to it.

If You’ve Been Thinking About It…

If you’ve ever thought about coming to something like this but felt unsure…

You’re not alone in that either.

People show up nervous. We’ve even had people who didn’t show up because it felt like too much. And many others were surprised by how much more confidence they grew from a practice run in an actual airport and sitting in a real aircraft. 

Our MSP airport workshop is designed to give you the opportunity to be in that environment—to learn, observe, ask questions, and begin facing the fear in a way that feels manageable and supported.

And maybe most importantly, to see that you’re not the only one navigating this.

If you’ve been considering it, we’d love to have you join us at a future Navigating Flight Anxiety at MSP Airport event.