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Airplane Regression, Leap of Faith, Solution and Success
Posted by mike on 3/3/2009, 11:17 am
haven't been here in a while since I went to Thailand last year with very good success.. Well I just got back from the philippines and felt I needed to report my regression and what I did to get through it.. I thought since I did the thailand trip without much problem last year I would be good, well maybe because this time I went with a friend it interfered, not sure.. Anyway, after about 4-5 hrs into the 12 hr flight I attempted and couldn't go... well at this point i had a minor panic.. so i went into the tool box: 10mg valium and a walk to the galley where the stewardists gladly gave me half a cup of straight vodka (philippine air has free alcohol!)... NOW, I know there are mixed reviews about using alcohol, it's a diretic or something and makes it worse, etc... Well after about 30 minutes, I don't remember the latter half of the plane ride ! I know I must of went because I was fine when I got to Manila... Well the friend I was with was a doctor and he told me I over-did it, I was in outer-space for the entire ride to Angeles city (3hrs from manila)..
Anyway, that was trip 1, trip 2 on the way back I had a similar problem so this time I throttled the use of the valium and alcohol - 6MG Valium and just 1 shot of vodka... PERFECT... just enough to get me to go and no major hangover (i'm 180, 5'6")... NOW the interesting part is on my connecting flight from LAX back to NY - I felt so comfortable that I had success without the use of anything... very weird.. I was trying to remember everything about my state of mind at the time and what was going on... Well a big part is that nobody was waiting to use the bathrooms, the air was very smooth, and my stream started as I pulled down that big folding shelf in front of me (i guess thinking about the mechanism or something)....
Well, what I learned is that your state of mind has alot to do with being able to go, for me Alcohol and Valium does the trick every time.. I'm not a severe case, but I truly believe the alcohol alters your shyness greatly.. also, it is easier on the bigger planes..
Good luck to all
Best, Mike
Re: Airplane Regression, Leap of Faith, Solution and Success
I think things may have worked out better if you had checked out the bathroom early on, say an hour after take off, when you did NOT need to go. That would have taken away the surprise element i.e. where are they, what are they like, what does it feel like walking along the aisle etc etc. Hopefully you asked for an aisle seat, so you could get up and "stretch your legs" whenever you liked without feeling that your seat neighbour(s) would register you going.
Re alcohol being a diuretic; that really refers to beer, and even then it does not affect some people this way as much as others.
As for mixing vodka and valium: that is warned against by pharmacists: "avoid alcohol if taking valium". Also be aware that the effects of valium can last into the following day and be dangerous if driving etc.
I suspect the valium would have done the job on its own, especially if you use a cognitive toolkit as described above.
Alcohol is a depressant and reduces inhibition, hence why it is easier to go with alcohol on board. But to depend on it is a road not to be travelled.
To readers of this post: be aware that both valium and alcohol are addictive and so should only be used only occasionally.
You are right that your state of mind has a lot to do with it, which is why we focus so much this on our workshops.
Happy travelling
Andrew
Re: Airplane Regression, Leap of Faith, Solution and Success
I have been unable to pee on planes for my whole life (37yrs). The worst was a 20 hour trip to Australia without peeing once. Over the last six months I have attended two UKPT workshops and have been given catheters by my urologist which have allowed me to load fluid on planes without the stress of being unable to pee. After having used them three times in plane toilets I have finally been able to pee normally twice last Xmas for the first time in my life. The workshops were also a big contributor to my success. Now, I still carry catheters on planes as a way of killing negative thoughts in the nest but now I don't need them most of the time. Problem solved.
