I get very very overloaded in airports now. It's not just the noise and crowds, the sensory stuff, unpleasant as that is; past stressful events have left their imprint, and these include not hearing announcements over all the background noise and missing a flight, triggering the security alarm, (hip implants do that) then being frisked in front of other passengers by brusque staff; the worry that I have overlooked some harmless but forbidden article in my luggage, or the risk of someone planting something there, of losing my passport and documents, of getting on the wrong plane (which I did on one occasion, having been given vague instructions), of arriving at my allotted seat to find someone else sitting there, getting off a flight to find my luggage has not been put on the plane, having to run (with luggage) to get a connecting flight because the first flight was delayed (Dallas), being accused of concealing pearls to avoid paying duty (they were my own and had been in the family for years). Queue jumpers pushing past and in front of you, or pushing you aside to take the last trolley..
I have been in many airports in many countries. The worst by far was LAX, where (amongst other adverse events) I was randomly pulled out of the arrival area by immigration at Los Angeles for no reason and treated appallingly by rude aggressive bullies who barked at me like dogs. Finally allowed to go on my way, I was accosted by an aggressive religious maniac on my way to the exit who demanded money and would not get out of my way until I gave him some.
Another factor which adds to all that kind of stress is not being able to sleep well (or sometimes at all) the night before, and so arriving at the airport already in a state of physical exhaustion, soon to be followed by nervous/emotional exhaustion. The prospect of arriving for the first time to a country you have never visited, with all the unknowns, is enough stress for me without all the airport stuff.
The only obvious meltdown I have ever had in an airport was (fortunately) in my own country. Unslept, overwhelmed and exhausted, I started to cry after checking in at the desk. One of the airline's ground staff was very kind from that moment and provided complete boarding assistance - arranged somewhere comfortable and quiet for me to sit, had food and a cold drink delivered, checked my hand luggage through security for me, took care of all the boarding pass procedures, sat with me while we waited to board, accompanied me to the plane and introduced me to the flight attendant, then gave me a name of a contact person who would meet me at the arrival hall to assist if I wanted help when I got to the destination. It was good to learn that you can be treated like that, in a respectful way, at least by that airline, though airports are still very stressful for me, and a quiet room would be a haven.
16 Apr 2017, 11:52 pm
