Post Travel Depression
 

How do you get over your "I am back home and completely depressed" moping?

I spent 47 days in Paris. I returned six days ago and I am still depressed at having to return.

I want to shut the shades, make the apartment completely dark, put on some mood lighting, arm myself with some red wine, postcards, a baguette, bree cheese and listen to "la vie en rose" again and again and again....or watch an old "french" movie (black and white) without english subtitles.

...oh i forgot...yes..i am in the midst of a pity party.

I really suffer from post holiday blues so I have to start planning my next trip even before I have taken the current one so that when I return I have another trip to look forward to!

Well,I spent a month in India this fall,and came back to a wicked case of the blues.So ,of course,I booked a trip to Venice,the only cure.I will be there for a week in March.

Okay, so we can't all book another trip right away, but you can day dream about your next trip..Look at your pictures, your souveniers.. and with a glass of wine by your side think of all the wonderful memories you have..

Oh how I relate to this. We returned from France and Paris in October and I am still morose and depressed. I feel exactly as you do.This week, I rented a movie called The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob on Netflix, just so I could see the streets of Paris. I rent all the French dvds.

I find myself visualizing myself at a small table sipping wine or a kir...then my husband reminds me how bad the Paris weather is now.( I'm in San Diego)

I'm lucky in that we have two trips planned this year, both of which will end in Paris.

I think if travel causes you to be unhappy after you return for a longer period than the trip itself, you should take that as a clue that maybe travel is not so good for you. It's not for everyone. It should enrich your life and give you lasting benefits. But if travel causes you to be miserable for the 5% of the year when you're not away on a trip, then maybe you're one of those people who shouldn't travel.

Much as I love traveling, I am always glad to be home and in my own bed, eating my own food--sometimes both at the same time.

I am always planning/daydreaming about other possible trips, though--thinking about what expenses I can forego so that I can take an extra trip somewhere.

Correction: I meant to refer to the 95% of the year when you're not traveling (not 5%). so post should read as follows:

think if travel causes you to be unhappy after you return for a longer period than the trip itself, you should take that as a clue that maybe travel is not so good for you. It's not for everyone. It should enrich your life and give you lasting benefits. But if travel causes you to be miserable for the 95% of the year when you're not away on a trip, then maybe you're one of those people who shouldn't travel.



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disagreeing with the above, maybe the time traveling, getting outside your day to day life, allows you to see changes that could be made, to make you happier.

I'm always glad to get back home and never feel depressed. I've got too much to catch up on, and there is always the next trip to plan and dream about.

I found this board about a year ago in the midst of a black-dog depression after returning home from Italy.

Reading about other people's travels and learning about where they go, how they do it and other ways of traveling didn't really <i>help</i> per se, but it did serve as a happy distraction.

Don't stop traveling. Happy 5% of the time (and I doubt it's as little as that) is better than happy 0% of the time, certainly.

THere is actually research on the different phases of &quot;acclimation&quot; for people who've been away for a year or more on assignment abroad. I know this isn;t what you're talking about, but I'm sure it's the same idea. THe graph does eventually point in a position direction, so take heart.

When I get really nostalgic for Europe I become a bit obsessive about reading the posts on this board. It helps a lot.