Jennifer Aniston is flying higher, literally and emotionally, thanks to hypnosis.
The Friends star, 55, has revealed she’s been using hypnotherapy to finally confront her long-standing extreme fear of flying, a phobia she’s carried for years. Speaking to Travel and Leisure, Aniston opened up about the rituals she once relied on to get through a flight, and how she’s now leaving them behind.
“I have an extreme fear of flying,” she said. “But I have been doing some hypnosis lately, and one of the requirements is to remove all of those superstitions.”
That meant letting go of a very specific travel habit: tapping the outside of the plane with her right hand and stepping on with her right foot. A nervous flyer’s ritual, yes, but one she’s now moved past.
“I have not been doing the right hand, right foot, and now it’s shockingly good!” she said, noting how the practice has helped her feel more grounded in the air.
In addition to hypnosis, Aniston also turns to meditation during flights to ease her anxiety, saying, “Plugging into a good meditation can get you through.”
The actress also shared a more down-to-earth challenge she’s been tackling lately: over-packing. A self-professed habitual over-packer, Aniston admitted she’s been actively working on slimming down her suitcase.
“I’ve been trying so hard to become an under-packer because I am notoriously an over-packer,” she said. “You just don’t know where you’re going to be on a certain day, or what mood you’re going to be in.”
Still, her tendency to bring extras seems to come in handy, especially for her friends. “My girlfriends really appreciate me because they can usually borrow all of my things that they have forgotten,” she laughed. “I’m providing a service!”
Aniston’s packing method? Stack by category. “I put all my T-shirts in, then all my underwear, bras, socks, workout stuff, and they just stack on top of each other, which really helps you out,” she explained.
This insight into her current mindset follows another recent revelation about her evolving approach to fitness and self-care. In an interview with People, Aniston reflected on how she used to push her body too hard in the name of staying fit, and how she’s learned to dial it back.
“You didn’t need to beat yourself up,” she said. “You can actually enjoy your workout, not break your body, and have an incredible transformation.”
Thanks to her partnership with fitness brand Pvolve, she’s embraced a low-impact, resistance-based training style that’s been more sustainable, and surprisingly more effective, than anything she’s done before.
Whether it’s managing flying anxiety, simplifying packing routines, or embracing gentler workouts, Jennifer Aniston is clearly leaning into a more balanced version of wellness. And as always, she’s doing it with humor, honesty, and a dash of style.
