A stressful and busy life can quickly take its toll on your health and wellbeing. Stress builds up and affects your mind, your body, and everything in your life. By the time you realise you’re actually stressed out, it’s too late, becuase the effects have grabbed hold.
It’s not a very happy story, is it?
Stress is a silent killer, and it is something which any people don’t take seriously enough. How many times every day do you hear someone say ‘I’m stressed?’ Are they really stressed? Or, are they just under a little more pressure than usual. Perhaps you say it a lot too. ‘I’m stressed’ has become our go-to saying for comedy value or for the lack of something better to say. In truth, stress is nothing to joke about.
A stressed out person will become a shadow of themselves, in health and mood. So, with that in mind, surely it’s vital to figure out ways to knock stress on the head?
Travel is thought to be one of the best tonics for a stressful life, but surely travel in itself is stressful? Busy airports, delays, figuring out how to get from A to B, sometimes in a country that doens’t speak the same language as you. Yes, it’s stressful, but it’s also exciting!
So, does travel really improve health and wellbeing? And can it help you rid your life of stress?
Travel broads the mind, it allows you a whole host of escapism opportunities, and it also forces you to take stock of your life, and see things for what they really are. How can you complain about your busy life when you’re in Africa seeing people who struggle to find fresh water? Travel is about putting things into perspective.
Of course, travel is also about experiences. You can tick a million things off your bucket list, you can learn new languages, experience new cultures, try new foods, and meet new people. Who knows what that next vacation could lead to.
Travel is about possibility.
People who travel regularly, be it on package tours, backpacking expeditions or anything else in-between, tend to be much more relaxed, open minded, pragmatic, and, of course, less stressed. They have a sense of excitement about the future, about the next place they’re going to visit, and they are more chilled out and ‘what will be, will be’ as a result.
Stress shows in your mood, your attitude, your behaviour, your drive, and it also shows in your appearance. A stressed person will be constantly tired, lacking in energy, and you will be able to see it just by looking at them. If we’re describing your life right now, perhaps it’s time you grabbed that passport?
