Traveling is a healthy “addiction”
Every year in May, Mental-Health Awareness Month takes place. The goal is to de-taboo and normalize mental illnesses like depression, burn-out, anxiety, imposter syndrome, and more. The month of action also focuses on how we can increase our mental well-being on a daily basis and beyond.
Traveling is not only joyful fun and offers a break from work, but is also demonstrably good for our well-being. This is not only the subjective perception of many people, but also proven by numerous studies. According to a study by Modul University Vienna, travel improves our mental health. The study analyzed that leisure tourism and related vacation travel play a major role in well-being in our society. Taking off a few days and going on vacation is simply good for our souls and helps us to switch off the daily hustle!
Tied up Minds
But what does travel bring to us to help with our mental health? Many struggles we deal with are accentuated by rumination, which “involves the repetitive thinking (…) on negative feelings and distress, and pattern repetition, which unconsciously leads us to behave in similar ways when confronted with distressing circumstances”. When you are within your regular environment, it is difficult to get out of these dynamics, far from the triggering circumstances, and look at things from a different perspective.
Mental health problems are an invisible shadow too little spoken about, and still too little known about. The unrest feelings are too often normalized to the extent that, when we try to get out of them, a feeling of emptiness overwhelms us, a sense of lack of control. We are so attached to those sufferings that we are often not allowing ourselves to let go and grow past it — not even asking for help, as if we weren’t allowed to do so.
In fact, travel is an opportunity for a blank page in between chaotic overwritten pages, for a new chapter in your life after experiencing a trauma or feeling you are ready to move on towards your next milestone, and to break out of the cycle in which you were running around for the past months or even years.
How traveling affects our mental health and makes us happy…
Traveling is a creative alternative to healing. It will keep you busy, discover new realities, and push you out of your comfort zone just until the level you want to, as an adventure can have many different shapes. During a trip you can be confronted with an unexpected situation. Even if you have planned the trip down to the smallest detail, an unexpected turn of events can happen at any time. Dealing with the situation will increase your confidence and happiness.
Through meeting new people with different cultural backgrounds as yours, and diving deep into others’ history and traditions, travel can make us more creative and foster “multicultural learning,” which enables us to solve problems in new ways, raise awareness of our surroundings, reduce rigidity and gain new perspectives.
It will allow you to meet new people from completely unrelated spheres which, in turn, will allow you to be who you want to be. With no past baggage, pre-defined beliefs, or labels. It will allow you to be the true self that you want to project to the world.
Going out into the world and seeing new places is an opportunity to get out of your existing circumstances and environment, allowing you to disconnect, reflect, gain self awareness, as once you are out of your comfort zone, you are confronted with who you are. Traveling gives you more air to breathe, which is often missed in our daily routines. You have time here to deal with yourself for once. Or if you travel with your partner or friends, you have time for “real” conversations. In addition, shared experiences were found to have a positive impact on well-being and strengthen relationships.
Traveling makes you happy because you’ll appreciate what you already have, again. By being away from the things you often take for granted — like family, close friends, home or a job that you actually love — you learn to appreciate them more. Or it can actually be an eye-opener, and let you take decisions that you were not having the courage to do earlier on. Calling home isn’t a chore; it’s something you actually look forward to.
On vacation, you spend more time in the “here and now”. As a result, you’ll automatically have less time to hang out on social networks. It’s healthy to take a break from the internet from time to time.
Taking care of your mental-health
Aside from making you happier in the short term, traveling can also make you a more content, healthier and relaxed person in the long run. Of course, most travel enthusiasts are constantly planning their next adventure. But when you’re back home or you can’t leave for your next vacation right away, you’ll think about your last one from time to time. Your memories and the experiences associated with them will make you happy and beam you back in time. Take a look at some photos from your past adventures, within seconds, many positive emotions and memories will come up in you and simply, make you smile.
Look at your mental-health as a friend you need to take care of and go on an adventure together!
