The GP has decided not to prescribe Diazepam for patients who wish to use this for a fear of flying before travel because:
- Diazepam is a sedative and it could impair your ability to concentrate. It may make you sleepy during the flight increasing the risk of any injury particularly in the emergency situations. This could seriously affect the safety of you and the people around you.
- Some people taking diazepam, can experience mood disturbances and make you behave in ways you normally wouldn’t. This could also impact on your safety and the safety of your fellow passengers or could lead you to get in trouble with the law.
- Diazepam is used to treat the conditions but it is not allowed to be prescribed for preventative reasons in non-medical settings.
- National prescribing guidelines followed by doctors also don’t allow the use of benzodiazepines in cases or phobia. Any doctor prescribing diazepam for a fear of flying would be taking a significant legal risk as this goes against these guidelines. Benzodiazepines are only licensed for short-term use in a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the problem you suffer with, you should seek proper care and support for your mental health, and it would not be advisable to go on a flight.
- In several countries, diazepam and similar drugs are illegal. They would be confiscated, and you might find yourself in trouble with the police for being in control of an illegal substance.
- Diazepam has a long half-life. This means it stays in your system for a significant time and you may fail random drug testing if you are subjected to such testing as is required in some jobs.
We appreciate a fear of flying is very real and very frightening and can be debilitating. However, there are much better and effective ways of tackling the problem. We recommend you tackle your problem with a Fear of Flying Course.
Fear of Flying Courses:
Easy Jet
www.fearlessflyer.easyjet.com Tel: 0203 8131644
British Airways
http://flyingwithconfidence.com/courses Tel: 01252 793 250
Virgin Atlantic
https://flywith.virginatlantic.com/bb/en/wellbeing-and-health/flying-without-fear.html Tel: 0344 874 7747