禮節(jié)美語:262 Fear of Flying 2

　　Sean 有飛行恐懼癥，可他偏偏又是國際銷售代表，需要經(jīng)常旅行。同事 Mimi 開玩笑說，他可真是選錯了職業(yè)。Mimi 說，

　　M: You certainly picked the wrong profession! You are an international sales representative - traveling is part of the job!

　　S: I know!! I thought my fear would lessen the more I did it - but it's been 10 years now and I'm still afraid of flying.

　　M: You know, the idea that you are more in control behind the wheel of a car than you are in an airplane might not be valid. Think about it: how much control do you have over road conditions or other drivers on the road? Very little, right?

　　S: That's true.

　　Mimi 覺得，Sean certainly picked the wrong profession. 選錯了職業(yè)。Sean 說，他原來以為，坐飛機坐得多了，飛行恐懼癥會慢慢好起來，誰知道，十年過去了，絲毫不見減弱。Mimi 說，Sean以為開車 - behind the wheels的時候自己可以控制自己命運，這種想法 is not valid, 不能成立，因為開車的人對路況和自己周圍的駕車人，是完全控制不了的。有什么辦法能減輕飛行恐懼癥患者的癥狀嗎?我們繼續(xù)聽。

　　M: Have you ever tried pretending that you're on a bus? My uncle uses this trick when he's flying....whenever the plane runs into some turbulence he just closes his eyes and pretends he's sitting on a bumpy bus.

　　S: Hmm....I'm not sure if that would work but it's worth a try.

　　M: Where do you usually sit on the plane?

　　S: As close as possible to an emergency exit!!

　　M: (Chuckles) My uncle says the best place to sit is as close to the wings as possible because in his experience, the center of the plane is more stable.

　　S: That makes sense. I'll try to find a seat near an emergency exit by the wings!

　　Mimi 建議Sean 嘗試一下，假裝自己是坐在一個顛簸的巴士上。Whenever the plane runs into some turbulence, turbulence is spelled t-u-r-b-u-l-e-n-c-e, turbulence 氣流，意思是飛機遇到氣流顛簸的時候，就假裝自己是坐在一個 bumpy bus 上。Sean 覺得 it's worth a try. 可以試試看。Mimi 問 Sean 一般都選擇什么地方的座位。Sean 說從來都是離 emergency exit 緊急出口越近越好。Mimi 說，飛機中央部位最穩(wěn)，也就是機翼附近?？上攵?，Sean 以后選擇位子的條件又多了一個，不光要離緊急出口近，還最好是在飛機中間的機翼部位。

　　M: Of course, if nothing else works, you can always see a doctor and perhaps he can prescribe some antianxiety medication for you.

　　S: I'd rather not use medications, but it might come down to that.

　　M: There are also a lot of courses available that use mental strengthening exercises, or even hypnosis! You should look into one of those programs and see if it works for you!

　　S: That's a good idea!

　　M: Maybe understanding how an airplane works....some of the basic principles of flight....what turbulence actually is and some other specifics about flying could help you "know your enemy," so to speak.

　　S: I like that idea! If I understood what I was experiencing....perhaps I wouldn't fear it so much! Thanks for your suggestions, Mimi! You're a real pal!

　　Mimi 建議，實在不行，Sean 還可以去找醫(yī)生，開點 antianxiety 抗緊張的藥，Sean 雖然不想吃藥，但也承認，it might come down to that. 最后沒辦法，可能也只能借助藥物了。另外，想克服心理障礙，還可以去參加鍛煉心志的課程，或者是了解飛機的飛行原理，所謂 know your enemy 知己知彼，百戰(zhàn)不殆，這些可能對Sean都有幫助。