When does excitement turn to anxiety and why?
 

I know there have been other threads on this subject but I am in the middle of a no-sleeping anxiety about out upcoming trip to Italy. I have been planning this for almost a year and been ecstatic with excitement. But as we are approaching the 3 weeks till trip mark, I am feeling stressed and anxious. Overwhelmed at work, running all the details of the leaving and the going over in my mind, thinking of all that could go wrong, wondering if I will get it all done before I go, etc. etc. I think I need a vacation from my upcoming vacation! Any helpful suggestions? Thanks!

Is this your first trip outside the USA, by chance?

Hi rbn,

>When does excitement turn to anxiety...

When does friendship turn into passion? :)

You don't need analyzin'/
It's not so surprisin'/
You don't need analyzin'/
That you feel very strange/
but nice....

Sit down. Have a glass of Italian wine and a little cheese.

Start thinking "dolci far niente". :)

((I))

Oh Phooo.

That should be

You don't need analyzin'/
It's not so surprisin'/
That you feel very strange/
but nice....

No advice to give you, but good luck. I understand. Hopefully, once you're on the plane, all the worries will go away.

I get to your state of mind with every trip, whether in the US or out. Add to that the last two weeks of school for the kids (the older two have finals, not just playing), countless end of the year ceremonies, concerts, etc. I don't know how many times I dream that someone's passport has expired, even though I've checked and rechecked.

Funny, but I'm actually more relaxed and easy going than usual once I'm ON vacation. It's just the getting there.

For me, part of the anxiety of Italy (and France and Costa Rica, etc.) is not being fluent in the language. When you arrive after being awake all night and you don't speak the language, that CAN be stressful.

I think most of us get so anxious because it takes us so long to plan for that perfect vacation. As it gets closer we start the "what if" game (what if the plane is delayed, what if their is a train strike...) and the second-guessing (perhaps I should stay here instead of there...). I think its perfectly natural. I don't get anxious as much as I used to, probably because I travel to Europe several times a year, but I used to almost make myself sick with anxiety, especially the day or two before we leave. Just take some deep breaths and start thinking about what you will be doing...that should get you excited! Another thing I do is make up "to do" lists and then check things off as I go. I feel like I'm accomplishing something, and it keeps me organized.

Tracy

I get it every time, too, rbnwdln! Usually about 1 week out when the same stresses you're talking about reach their peak and time to complete projects seems to be running out. Then I have a bad evening where I think of everything:

"Is it really worth it?"
"Can I really afford this?"
"Should I really be leaving now?"
"All this planning and it will be over in a couple of weeks!"

and on and on. DON'T WORRY! It clears up quickly and by the time you get on the plane, buckle up and take a deep breath, you'll be saying "Yippee Skippee, I'm heading to Italy!"

Have a wonderful, magical trip!

My thoughts and prayers are with you. Been there - done that!

There's likely no real silver bullet to solve the problem (if I knew one I'd be rich?), but one idea comes to mind - - - you know when you buy a new carpet how you dread that first spilled coke or glass of wine, and how you're ALMOST inclined to do it intentionally to get it out of the way? With travel, particularly for "complicated" travel and for travel that you're "responsible" for (since your loved one may have left it all to you?), the mantra should be something like - "something will go wrong, let's just get it out of the way." Hopefully that "something" won't be anything serious (like getting very ill, or a plane crashing, or something that's irrecoverable).

I'm just ramblin' - but that's my nature. Good luck. Drink a little wine or grappa or single malt - whatever helps get you through the night! :)

KC

No this is not my first trip to Europe. It is my 7th. I always have a little anxiety attack right before the trip, usually because I am exhausted from all the work that taking a long trip out of the country entails. But 3 weeks before the trip is unusual. Probably because there are major changes in my job right now and much must be done in the next 3 weeks. Plus I plan EVERYTHING for 4 people to travel so I feel a responsibility to have every duck in a row. I like the advice of having a glass of wine and thinking "ItalyItalyItaly....." Hahaha

I, too, plan the entire trip for my family of 5. I email all kinds of links to my husband, and he ignores them. We leave in 12 days and he "discovered" over the weekend that we are spending 6 nights in Rome. "Why 6 nights? That is too long." Well, he couldn't be bothered to give an opinion months ago when I was making reservations. So part of it is all of that responsibility.

I also have major "using the ATM in a foreign country" fears. I was all up to do it in Paris a couple of years ago, but so many places took credit cards that we didn't even spend all of the original euros we brought with us. Italy seems to require more cash, so that causes anxiety.

Also, I'm used to relying a lot on public transportation, and that doesn't seem to be a good option in much of Rome. More anxiety.

I'm glad to know that others get equally anxious. I've been crossing off days on the calendar in anticipation of the trip, and now that it is only 3 weeks away, I'm finding myself oddly reluctant to cross the days off -- feeling a little panicked at everything that still needs to be done. And I've started to have the usual anxiety dreams -- like it's an hour before my flight and I've forgotten to pack; or I get to France only to discover I forgot to bring along all the planning documents I've been carefully amassing over the past few months. Then I dreamt that it was time to go to work, but I forgot where I worked!

Uh oh, MelJ just gave me a whole new set of worries!

It’s good to know other people feel this anxiety, too. This is our first trip to Europe, and making all the plans myself and knowing we’re spending a lot of money for a dream vacation adds to the stress.

I’ve had dreams of missing our plane at least 6 times, and the other night I dreamed my purse was stolen off my shoulder before we even left the US. :)

We leave in 8 more sleeps for Prague, Munich, Verona, Rome, Sorrento and London, spread out over 3 weeks. I've been pretty darn calm for me for some reason this time, but ever since yesterday, the anxiety is starting to set in. My dreams lately have been:Losing my passport, atm card not working, left half of my luggage 3 countries away and missing my train over and over.

We leave Friday, or at least I do, with my daughters for a trip scheduled before we decided to buy a new house and boat! We are in the house, boat has just come up from North Carolina, both daughters will be in DC this weekend for one daughter's law school graduation.....I'm on overload and feel certain that the trip is "underplanned". Not the first week in Paris with my daughters....graduate has inherited travel planning genes...but my husband, two friends and I have a week in a cottage in the Loire Valley and an apartment in Paris and not the first reservation for anything! I know we'll survive and I have a few days left to make these reservation. It is stress I'm not used to.

Dreams, yes, those are the worst. My doctor had advised me that the current medication I am on "may lead to some nightmares." Well, it does. Between my upcoming wedding (12 days!) and our first-trip-out-of-the-US honeymoon, I don't even want to sleep because of the anxiety-fueled dreams ... wear wrong wedding dress, no one shows up at wedding, forget to pack, flight canceled, London shuts doors to tourists (that one particularly stunk). But, I'm not really sleep deprived because, above all, I am so excited! I really am more excited about our first trip to Europe than the wedding (ok, if I had to rank them, I am most excited about our MARRIAGE, then the trip, then the actual wedding day). Planning that was as much work as planning the wedding. Doing both at the same time, I feel like Wonderwoman.

Yep, I have the same problem. Unfortunately, I get it frequently months and months before. What if I don't like that country? What if I do something stupid? What if our ATM cards don't work? What if I missed something important? What if I get fired when I come back? What if we get lost? What if I am a total idiot and worry about things that are completely ridiculous? Well yeah, that last one does come true. :)

I also get a touch of anxiety right before leaving on a long trip, and am currently in the middle of some anxiety right now.

Normally it's not so bad, but this time my parents are coming along on their first trip to Europe. So in addition to making sure I have everything in order for myself and my daughter, I have to make sure my parents have everything in order.

They left all the planning of the trip to me, and I've gotten to where I feel this pressure (entirely self-induced) to make sure everything goes smoothly for them.

Couple that with all the year end activity my daughter has with school - tests, projects, concerts, etc. - I'm quite tired.

In less than 2 weeks, though - all of my stress and anxiety will be forgotten as I'm flying my way across the ocean on the start of my grand vacation. :)

I wish I knew the answer to this question. My spirit is an adventuresome willing traveler. My body, not so much. I get so wound up and anxious, I end up making myself sick.

I too have to take care of so much before I can leave. Often working 15-21 days in a row, to take a "vacation".

I just started a new job, and they are letting me go on my concert tour that I had planned for over a year. Not paid of course. That has me stressed, I am budgeting to pay bills since I won't get paid for two weeks.

I will definitely read any suggestions with great interest.