Dealing with Post-Vacation Syndrome: How to Bring the “Spice” Back Into Life

Traveling can be an incredibly transformative experience. It exposes us to new cultures, people, languages, and opportunities that expand our worldviews and allow us to grow in numerous ways. However, many don’t talk about the mourning process that happens when we return home. 

When we travel, we get to be a version of ourselves that many people don’t see: the version that feels more like our "true selves". It is often the adventurous, free-spirited, and ambitious part of us that comes out when exposed to newness. When returning home to old routines, it’s hard to find places that this version of ourselves can fit into.

Losing that sense of newness, along with the special part of ourselves, can often result in a loss of lust and excitement for life outside of travel. I’ve experienced this “post-vacation syndrome” more times than I can count, especially after being gone for long periods. These “withdrawals” can make it hard to complete everyday tasks, and make life seem more mundane.

It’s important to acknowledge that these feelings are completely natural. It means that you have truly grown and you are no longer the same person you were. It’s also important to know that while it may be difficult to be the same person you are traveling, you can still add variation to your routines to stay stimulated, and channel these parts of yourself. Here are some of my strategies:

Try something new 

Try something you haven't done before that allows you to step outside your comfort zone. This could look like picking up a new hobby, or spicing up your current one like developing a consistent work-out routine or mixing your existent one up and cooking something new, or even making a dish that you enjoyed while traveling. This can also be done by taking classes, going to events, and getting involved in clubs or activities that allow you to explore something you’re interested in. Joining and applying myself in clubs has allowed me to express different parts of myself, uncover new interests, and meet other like-minded people.  

Surround yourself with like-minded people

It’s natural to yearn for the people you meet traveling that emulate energies and characteristics that inspire you. While these people may seem hard to find when returning home, you’d be surprised who you meet when you begin creating new opportunities to interact with others. This can be by starting a conversation with a stranger in public, reaching out to someone you admire, or, as mentioned before getting involved in activities/groups of people that have similar interests. It also doesn’t mean you have to start cutting off the people that don’t serve you, but instead put energy into the people and things that do. Once I began putting more time into my creative passions and interests, I immediately attracted more like-minded people that have helped me grow personally and professionally.

Setting monthly goals

Setting small, achievable goals each month are great ways to stay organized and motivated to grow into the person you want to be. Moreover, setting challenges each week that work towards your goals can make it easier to stay focused and optimize your time. I have found that setting a new goal each month, and creating 1-2 weekly challenges has helped me become more intentional with my time, while making me more excited about life, and taking on new challenges at work and school.

Journaling

We all need time to process our feelings and experiences. Journaling can be a powerful tool to help you reflect on your life, and gain insight on what you’re feeling. My travel journal, gratitude journal, and journal I use to reflect and analyze everyday experiences have greatly contributed to a lot of my healing and transformation. Using these journals regularly has helped me organize and express my thoughts more succinctly, gain clarity of feelings and experiences, and understand myself more deeply.

At the end of the day, we will always mourn the person we were when traveling. While it may seem difficult to cultivate this inner traveler, or, inner child in our daily lives, finding new opportunities for self-growth will help us get closer to these parts of ourselves, and illuminate new parts as well. Plus, it keeps life a lot more interesting. 

What version of you comes out when you travel? What are some strategies that you use/plan to use to channel these parts of yourself? Comment down below!