Calming the Fears of Anxious Travelers

After traveling to nearly 40 countries on all seven continents, Rita Anya Nara decided to write a guidebook. But the result is no ordinary travel guide.

Nara’s recently-released The Anxious Traveler (Antareura Media, 2013) shows readers who are too afraid to travel how to face their fears head-on, so they too can experience one of life’s most rewarding and transforming pastimes.

Her book holds lessons for those with less critical fears that keep them from traveling, according to Nara, who suffers from severe anxiety disorders. The Anxious Traveler is also a useful tool for travel agents looking for ways to help clients who are fearful travelers.

“There’s nothing more frustrating or heartbreaking than having the time and money and ability to go out and explore the world, but emotions are holding you back,” said Nara.

Armchair to plane seat
Nara, who is 36, said her own journey from what she calls “armchair to plane seat,” started when she began having panic attacks at age 11. She was eventually diagnosed with panic and social anxiety disorders.

Despite her fears, she always had the travel bug.“I was fascinated with languages, checking out books from the library on countries from Mexico to Singapore,” she said.

Nara underwent all the accepted treatments for anxiety, but they didn’t help – or help enough. “I was existing instead of living,” said Nara.

That first trip
Nara’s fears also held her back at her job as an environmental specialist with the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. “I wasn’t promoted to senior specialist until three years after I started traveling,” she said.

So what changed?

Nara’s psychiatrist encouraged her to take a short trip in 2001 from her California home to Vancouver with her sister and mother. The trip was a success – though not without some headaches – but after 9/11 her fears over terrorism kept her from further travel.

In 2007, however, she and her sister again traveled to Vancouver in what Nara calls a “back to square one” trip. This time, it got her traveling in earnest.

Universal fears
By its very nature, travel can trigger fears beyond those involving terrorism and flying, according to Nara. “We try to control our environment and when you’re traveling you can’t do that.”

Some of those fears affect individuals who don’t suffer with anxiety disorders, said Nara. She has received feedback from individuals with “high-performance” work and home lives who are afraid to travel.

For those with severe anxieties, travel can help conquer other fears, Nara believes. “Traveling puts you through many of the same processes of traditional stress management; the big difference is that you are having an incredible life experience while doing so.

“Why does it work? Because travel puts you in the here and now, taking you out of your head and putting you back in touch with your senses.”

Coping strategies
A key strategy for anxious travelers is to plan ahead – “not to take the surprise and delight out of travel but to anticipate problems,” Nara said.

“Having a backup plan, looking at an itinerary and thinking about if something fails what will I do sounds like basic advice, but it’s amazing how often it doesn’t happen.”

There’s no reason today to “walk into something unprepared; there are guidebooks on everywhere from Timbuktu to Inner Mongolia. Learn a lot about where you’re going beforehand,” said Nara.

Also “understand what your choices are,” she advised. “A lot of people don’t understand lodging choices or best times to go [to a particular destination]. Where you stay can have a huge impact on how you feel about your trip.”

Agents can help
A self-described budget traveler, Rita Anya Nara often books her trips online. However, she has also booked through travel agents, and she endorses both their practical value and their empathy.

“The more remote the destination, the more you need an agent,” she said. “I had a wonderful experience when I booked a cruise to Antarctica with an agent.”

The agent went “above and beyond,” reassuring her about what to expect on board, providing information on shore excursions and even putting her in touch with the ship’s doctor.

“He understood what it was like to be a first-time cruiser,” Nara said of the agent.

“Beyond the questions he answered about health and safety, he told me how to keep in touch with my family, about the Internet on board and about all the ship’s facilities.”

Do-it-yourself regrets
Nara said that while she has booked many multiple-country trips on her own, “I wish I had consulted an agent – someone who understands the practicalities and the hiccups of places.”

She’s currently planning to use an agent to book an upcoming trip to Greenland.