Is Post Travel Depression a Thing?

Why do I feel depressed after traveling? Trust me, I've been there. We’ve all been there. You go on an amazing trip and come home with the dreaded post vacation blues.

​Science backs this feeling. It's known as PTD, a phenomenon humans experience when returning home from a trip. Symptoms may include : Feelings of sadness, loneliness, irritability or lethargy.  Social withdrawal, changes in sleep or  appetite and a lack of motivation may also be present. This is known to be especially common when you've just experienced a life-changing adventure or visited a culture that is drastically different than your own. 

Luckily, I have some easy ways you can avoid falling into this slump. So keep reading!

My Story

This is me at the age of 14 heading off on my very first overseas adventure. I was about to board the plane for a volunteer group trip to Ghana, Africa. 

I'm Incredibly grateful for this experience because it planted the seed for what my life is today. ( see other blogs about the story .) As a teenager, I  saw the world in a whole different way after coming home. Everything I knew about life had shifted. I had a whole new, beautiful  perspective on our planet and humanity. 

Coming back to the suburbs in the United States: None of my friends had experienced this. There was no internet or social media at the time. I came home feeling SO inspired to do big things with my life. I also came home, kind of "resenting" the way our society took everything for granted and most of all, I came home feeling lonely because no matter how you try to paint a picture of things you experience while traveling - if your friends haven't been there - there's just no way for them to "get it." 

I quickly fell back into my daily routine and the magical epiphanies I discovered became merely memories. In my teen years and twenties, I really lost the connection to my new found passion and fell into partying and just "trying to make it" here in the US because I had no support system or tools to keep the travel love flowing.

​The Inspiration

Even though I went through a few tough years, that experience is one of the many life chapters that inspired me DECADES later to start my company VIVE Society Travel. So that solo travelers not only have amazing people to share adventures with but also have a community to encourage each other through their life's journey, even after coming home. 

​Tips to Prevent PTD

So here are my tried and true tips on how you can travel and use those experiences to UP LEVEL your life story instead of falling into the dreaded post-travel blues.

1. Share Your Story
Today, we are blessed with technology where you can share your experiences and inspire others. As we all know, it takes FOREVER to go through all those pics and videos on your phone, so take your time and enjoy reliving all the special moments. I love creating albums on my iPhone + socials so I can easily access them anytime I need a little happiness boost. Also, by sharing your stories, you will always be inspiring others to see the world more too. 
Consider starting a blog, or do a presentation for co-workers or friends you'd like to encourage to travel more. 

2. Keep Community 
Get linked with a Travel Community that you feel connected to. There are lots of FaceBook Groups +  local in-person Meet Ups for travelers. You can join my ​FREE Facebook Group here and follow VIVE Society's Instagram to stay in loop with all of our virtual and in-person events. 

3. Have Another Trip Booked
This is the MOST important. It is proven that having a trip to look forward to improves your mental health, It makes the long days at work worth it. When bad days are full on, you know that. there are better days coming and when you feel your mind slipping to somewhere negative, you can shift your thoughts to daydreaming about the adventures ahead.

Planning your next get away while flying home from a trip? For your mental state + happiness ... highly recommend!

In this day and age, finances are a common factor in preventing many from taking that next step towards a trip so at VIVE we have made sure that all of our trips are easy to secure with a small deposit and the ability to make payments over time. So it's one step easier to make sure your next trip is a reality. This was one of my MUSTS when creating the VIVE brand.

Have you ever experienced PTD?

Let me know in the comments and feel free to share any other tips you have for keeping happy while living the life of a world traveler!