birthdaygirlstrip

I don't know why this happens, but before a major trip I tend to get a bit tense and snappy and irritable and happy all at the same time.

Usually I have a lot to do to prepare for the trip (making sure pet is ok, work is caught up on, house is clean, hotels and flights confirmed, clothing, money), and since I procrastinate, I have to do everything all at once.

I think I also get nervous because until I have safely landed at my destination, I will not feel totally on vacation. Sigh.

Anyone else get a little nervous or irritable before a big trip?

sandi_travelnut

I think it's very normal to get excited and nervous. As much as we don't want to think about it...you never know what may happen on your trip or at home while you're gone.

lizzy911

Leaving for Paris in 20 days, and have just starting with the anxiety. I think I am driving my boyfriend insane. Once I get there though I'm always fine, and excited for the real fun to begin!

My boyfriend sounds like you - a procrastinator - but he definitely is not worried at all! Then again, I wouldn't be either if I had a Type A like me planning out most of the trip

tcreath

I think its quite normal. I used to get this way, and would just about make myself sick the day before we left! Now I travel to Europe a few times a year so I have somewhat of a routine established and the anxiety has all but diminished.

Tracy

suze

Perfectly common and normal. I think people express it slightly differently though. I hyper-obsess about packing, I do mean really overboard. I stop being nervous once I am checked-in at the airport having a cocktail waiting for my flight. For me that's when I feel on vacation (maybe even a bit earlier actually, in the taxi on the way to the airport).

tod

It's so important for people who have spent months preparing for an overseas holiday to realize that the whole excercise has been, and is about to be, very stressful even if you keep telling yourself you are loving every minute of it!
I can only give my very best advice which works miracles for me and that is to start a course of Vit.B Complex(neurobian) injections a month or even 6 weeks before departure date.
For those who can't bear the thought of a needle in the rump every week, you can get tablets.
I swear I cope with situations better and really enjoy what I have set out to have - a holiday!

basingstoke1

I found tod's note interesting in that there are those for whom travel induces stress and others for whom travel reduces stress. Where do you find yourself on this scale? For me travel produces excitement, anticipation, but stress? No. Quite the opposite, it is stress relief.

birthdaygirlstrip

I think it is the build up that can cause a bit of stress--perhaps the feeling that something very good is about to happen and the hope that all things go well. Also, there is the work preparation, bills and home preparations as well.

dublincailin

So its not only me!! Even though I love travelling I find myself stressed out and unable to sleep for about two weeks before the trip! Usually nightmares about missing flights, etc. too. Once at the airport, checked in - it vanishes and I enjoy the trip stressfree and sleep good too!

Gary_Mc

My wife definitely has to suffer my irritability before a vacation. She alternates between saintly indulgence and keeping me on a short leash.

Regards, Gary

wally34949

I get nervous when I get in the car to go to the airport. I say to myself Passport, Credit Card, Driver's License, Ok, if I forgot something, I can buy it there.

tod

basingstoke1 - I agree.
Some people put their heart & soul into every minute detail of the trip - you need only read the occasional post right here on Fodors to tell who likes what and how!
When things don't go according to plan A or even Plan B , can they just laugh it off or become extremely stressed out?
I am so glad to hear you sound the relaxed take-it-as-it-comes kind of person!

JerseySue

It's the packing that gets to me !! Never know what to bring then I pack toooooo much and have to deal with the luggage !! I'm so afraid I won't have the right clothes to wear - so I bring it all. Then I regret it when I get home and have to put it away again.

chepar

I don't get irritable before a big trip, but I definitely do start to stress. It mainly has to do with me obsessing if I've got all the information I need and if I've done everything I need to do - notify banks, credit cards, reconfirm hotels, etc.

I leave on my trip in 4 weeks and I've already started to feel the first bits of it coming on. I don't normally start to go bonkers so early, but this time I'm taking my parents along on their first trip to Europe, so I'm also stressing that they're taking care of what they need to do.

I'll probably start to obsess about what I'm packing in a couple of weeks.

And then, once I'm on the plane, the stress goes away. I end up thinking that it's too late to worry if I've forgotten anything, I'll just have to deal with it once I'm there.

Mariannelovesclothes

I get crazy about what clothes to take. Lately, though, I have taken to starting packing a week ahead, and I organize all the outfits I'd like to take--on paper. Then, I start to combine things that would go well together, to reduce the amount of stuff.
Having a methodical system, does help me relax a bit.
M.

birthdaygirlstrip

Tooth---ugh.

So now I think I am feeling a pain in my tooth area...which I should not have since I got my teeth looked at in December and I have no more wisdom teeth to pull.

I hate it when my teeth and body play little tricks with me!! Ugh.....

suze

Marianne, works even better if you take the clothes and hang them somewhere separate so you get a visual on what all you'll pack (i think that makes it even easier than working from a list I mean).

Mariannelovesclothes

I used to put everything on the bed in the guest bedroom--until I got two kittens... Now, it's impossible; they love to play with your clothes...

birthdaygirlstrip

My cat is going crazy over my suitcase....I hope I don't get to the airport and have to embarassingly remove little cat nails......

CRAZY4TRAVEL

I start second guessing all my decisions a few weeks before I travel. I wonder if I picked the right hotels...two weeks to go now and I am trying not to worry about it as it would be difficult to change them now. I guess that a form of nervousness.