It sounds weird to think we need to pay attention to our mental health while on vacation. After all, there’s plenty of evidence showingvacations improve our mental health.
But when you go on vacation, you leave behind the comfort of a familiar environment, the support of a therapist, and the consistency of a routine. A vacation can actually trigger mental illness symptom flare ups, whether you’retraveling aloneor with friends or family.
Here are some strategies you can use to stay mentally healthy on your next trip:
Take Care of Your Body
Exercisehelps stave off mental illness symptoms. But it can be hard to make time for it while you’re on vacation.
If going to the gym is part of your normal routine, you can drop in to your hotel gym. Or if you belong to a chain gym, there are likely facilities all over the country you may be able to access for no extra fee.
You also leave behind your regular sleep routine when you go on vacation. A vacation is the time to catch up on rest and relaxation, butgoing to sleepand waking up at the same time every day (even if both are later than your usual routine) will definitely help keep you centered.
If you know drinking alcohol can trigger yourdepressionoranxiety, order a virgin cocktail instead. You’ll feel just as fancy. I always go for a virgin Bloody Mary on flights.
Plan to Have Your Own Space
When you’re visiting family, it might seem convenient to stay in a guest bedroom. Despite being a “vacation,” it can get stressful when everyone is cooped up in the house together.
Create a Loose Schedule for Family Members Who Like to Hijack the Trip
Planning activities ahead of time is a great way to prevent anyone — whether it be a controlling relative or friend — from hijacking your trip.
Everyone has different needs and expectations when it comes to a vacation. Some might want to go to a child-friendly restaurant, while others may want fancier cuisine. Discussing these types of plans ahead of time and finding a compromise can reduce stress and frustration.
Meditate
Despite being a respite from your everyday, there’s a lot going on when you travel. Meditation will help you focus on the moment and prevent stressors like lost luggage, delayed flights, and misunderstandings from becoming overwhelming or overly frustrating. It’s also a great way to stay “grounded” during lift off if you have a fear of flying.
Meditation can seem complicated but is actually simple. Close your eyes and focus on your breath. Whenever you notice your mind wandering, come back to the breath.
There are countlessguided meditation appsyou can for free while on vacation. Simple Habit or 10% Happier are two I’ve used and can vouch for.
If you’re interested in learning more about meditation, check out these pieces as well:
Bring Something from Home
If you’re someone who suffers fromanxietywhen you fly, it might be helpful to bring along a small object you find soothing. Or it could be a calming scent like a small amount of scented oil (e.g. coconut oil).
Have a Plan for Contentious Topics of Conversation
You may be worried about visiting relatives who have strongly-held beliefs that don’t align with your own. Or perhaps, if traveling abroad, you’ll be meeting people from other countries who have negative opinions about your country. This is a common concern given today’s political climate. Nonetheless, there are steps you can take to prepare for and avoid these triggering conversations.
As Talkspace Staff Writer Joseph Rauch has stated in past posts, it can be good to remind yourselfthere’s more to relationships than politics(or whatever contentious topic you disagree on).
“When you care about someone, your relationship with them will go beyond politics,” he writes. “Political opinions are only a small part of who your family members are.”
Set a Budget
My favorite method is to only withdraw the cash I want to spend for the next week and not use credit cards to pay during that time. This works especially well if you’re abroad and want to minimize ATM withdrawal and credit card fees.
By following even one of these tips, you can maximize vacation fun and restore your mental health.
TryOnline Therapy
Traveling can make it physically impossible to attend in-person therapy but, unfortunately, your mental health struggles don’t take a vacation when you do. If you face mental health challenges, being able totext your Talkspace therapist 24/7offers the support you need no matter where you are in the world — whether mellowing out on the beach or getting extreme on top of the world.
Bio: Michelle is a freelance copywriter and content marketing strategist. She helps digital nomads find practical ways to achieve and navigate a location-independent lifestyle on her blog,Mishvo in Motion.
Our goal at Talkspace is to provide the most up-to-date, valuable, and objective information on mental health-related topics in order to help readers make informed decisions.
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