If the word “fuselage” is any indication, planes aren’t built by people with an appreciation for comfort. Ever since I made the decision to wean myself off of Xanax, it has become clear to me that if I want to enjoy flying, I need to take matters into my own hands.
For my Egypt trip I decided to create a Travel Betty comfort bag. It needed to be small enough to grab in a fit of panic while at the same time large enough to contain all I need to keep from drawing blood from my seatmate.
I used a soft, black, drawstring shoe bag that Travel Boyfriend got on his Upper-Class Virgin Atlantic flight a few months back (although, to be fair, even a Lower-Class shoe bag will do). We had nine flights total during our five weeks in Egypt and in the end I was more than pleased with the results.
Travel Betty Comfort Bag Contents:
- Lavender-scented eye pillow (breathe deeply during take-off)
- Palm-sized massage roller (to avert pesky deep vein thrombosis)
- iPod (loaded with Fear of Flying podcasts as well as my hypnotherapist’s personalized relaxation MP3)
- Lip balm
- Eye drops
- Wet-naps
- Ear plugs
- Xanax (just in case!)
- Burt’s Bees Hand Salve
- Breath Mints
- Chocolate
A word to the wise when creating your own comfort bag, don’t forget to separate out any liquids into a clear zip bag for the asinine security procedures.
