How to Get Over the Blues After Your Vacation (and Get Back to Your Routine)
When you come back from a fun-filled vacation, it’s hard to just drop everything and return to your daily life without feeling a little overwhelmed. However, you can use the trip as motivation to get back to a productive routine that you enjoy. Here’s how to get back to your daily routine and keep your interest in travel.
Return to the cycle of events
Depending on how long you’ve been away, falling back into sleep, exercising, and working will not be easy. When planning your trip, book an extra day at the end so you can recover and prepare for the adjustment period you will have upon your return. For example, use these tips to get rid of jet lag and get back to normal sleep patterns faster by pointing them towards your home rather than your destination:
You will also likely want to revert to other health-related habits, such as exercise or proper nutrition (that is, if you did not diet while on vacation ). Set yourself up for success by planning the first week after training as a week for training and other activities . Making a list of what you want to accomplish and focus on getting it done will help you get to where you were before your trip.
As US News notes, getting back in touch with your friends is also important to get back into your daily life. Go beyond checking social media to see what they were up to while you were away, and make a plan to meet them in person. You will get the opportunity to relive your trip by sharing with them, and also make it easier to get back by talking with people close to you.
When it comes to your work routine, you can help yourself by taking some preventative measures before take off. Reduce the number of emails you need to analyze, shift the responsibility to others who will follow them . Make it clear in your out of office message that they should contact you when you return to the office for a date X. Since they are the ones who need something from you, it reminds them to come to you when you return instead of to wait for you to receive an email, which may be several weeks old.
You will likely have tons of emails, messages, and appointments on the day you return, and it might be tempting to just jump in and try to do it all at once (or worse, just ignore it all). Carve out a portion of your first day to prioritize things (or, if you’re feeling particularly anxious, do it the night before or on your plane ride home to get started).
Get momentum by choosing one thing (even if it’s a small task) that you know you can finish that day, and focus your energy on it. You will feel fulfilled and as if you have already returned to your daily work, as you are doing everything. Remember the difference between urgent and important :
You don’t want to spend too much time getting ready for work without working at all, but a little preparation can make that first day a lot easier.
Remind yourself of your trip and plan your next one
The fact that you have returned home does not mean that you should simply forget about the trip. Remember your vacation by posting photos on it. Print your photos and hang them in your home or office. Set your photos as backgrounds on your phone, computer, tablet, or social media profiles. When traveling, buy souvenirs that you will use in your daily life: for example, spices or cooking utensils, art objects that you place where you see them, or clothes that you actually wear.
You can also save the habits you have acquired during your trip. Frequently, the freedom to travel encourages you to try new things. If you’ve tried something new, like learning how to surf or meditate, keep doing it when you get home. You can also apply this to cultural experiences. If you’ve learned how to make something delicious, try doing it at home. If you have learned about a philosophy that you like during your trip, put it into practice in your daily life.
You can also get rid of the sadness after your trip by planning your next adventure! While it is impossible for most of us to make a few large trips each year, even planning for next year’s trip (or a smaller, closer trip ) can help. Focusing only on your next destination – not your entire wishlist – gives you the motivation to start saving by collecting specific parts for a specific region.
Finally, you can fight the post-trip blues by exploring your own community. Lonely Planet recommends opening your eyes to the discoveries you can make in your own backyard. Having made a recent solo trip , I realized that there are so many events and activities I could go to in my own city – I just let the fear of being alone stop me. You can also share your trip with those who were unable to join you or who also visited the same place. A trip story is a great way to relive the hustle and bustle of travel – just make sure the other person is really interested.