For those who are afraid of flying, new research shows music may be your cure. Digital music service Spotify recently commissioned a study that was carried out by anxiety psychologist Dr. Becky Spelman from the Private Therapy Clinic in London. It investigated the type of music that best helps calm the nerves of nervous flyers.
What Dr. Spelman found that was that breathing in time to music with a low bpm, at a controlled and reduced pace, is proven to lower heart rate and blood pressure, which in turn reduces anxiety. Moreover, listening to songs that stimulate both sides of the brain while using headphones with your eyes closed can be very relaxing, especially when the music is harmonious and emotive.
Explains Dr. Spelman, “Travel anxiety is caused by irrational thoughts where the threat is exaggerated and inappropriate. Music that stimulates both the logical left and emotional right sides of the brain is said to stimulate the limbic system, which processes negative memories and emotions, which in turn helps people think in a more balanced, rational way suppressing anxiety.”
To relieve you of having to do any research on your own, the team also came up with the perfect calming travel playlist for anxious fliers. It includes:
- Someone Like You – Adele
- Orinoco Flow (Sail Away) – Enya
- Piano on The Beach – Liborio Conti
- Piano Concerto No. 21 in C major (“Elvira Madigan”) K. 467 – Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus
- Better Together – Jack Johnson
- Pure Shores – All Saints
- Buffalo Soldier – Bob Marley
- Scar Tissue – Red Hot Chilli Peppers
- Paradise – Coldplay
- As I Lay Me Down – Sophie B. Hawkins
- Inside Out – Britney Spears
- Ignition – R Kelly
- Flaws and All – Beyoncé
- The Christmas song – Nat King Cole
- Space Oddity – David Bowie
Jessica Festa is the editor of the travel sites Jessie on a Journey (http://jessieonajourney.com) and Epicure & Culture (http://epicureandculture.com). Along with blogging at We Blog The World, her byline has appeared in publications like Huffington Post, Gadling, Fodor’s, Travel + Escape, Matador, Viator, The Culture-Ist and many others. After getting her BA/MA in Communication from the State University of New York at Albany, she realized she wasn’t really to stop backpacking and made travel her full time job. Some of her most memorable experiences include studying abroad in Sydney, teaching English in Thailand, doing orphanage work in Ghana, hiking her way through South America and traveling solo through Europe. She has a passion for backpacking, adventure, hiking, wine and getting off the beaten path.
