The Stress-Free Travel Zone
It’s summertime in the Northern Hemisphere, and August is a big travel month. You may be looking forward to the destination, but sometimes getting there includes confronting stressors like traffic, weather, crowds, and delays. I could go on, but you get my point.
How you internalize the travel experience is reflected in your mood, behavior, and physical well-being. Are you going to arrive at your destination with your neck in knots, a stiff back, and aching joints? Will you get to your vacation tired and irritable? Is it possible to get to where you are going feeling nearly as excited as you did when you began the adventure?
What if you think of travel as the adventure that begins and ends the vacation experience? An adventure is full of surprises. It includes unexpected events with circumstances and situations beyond your control. An adventure is fun because there is an anticipation of the unknown. You have the intelligence, wit, and grace to negotiate any challenge. The things you cannot foresee that you will have to address are not a problem unless you get worked up beforehand and worry yourself into worry, irritation, and anxiety.
Anxiety curtails one’s ability to solve problems because it can increase incoherent thought. What can you do if you start feeling anxious; what will stabilize your thoughts and focus your mind quickly and easily? Plan ahead. Create a playlist of relaxing music. Take five minutes. Close your eyes. Let the sides of your mouth turn up slightly. Inhale through your nose as if you are smelling something lovely. Purse your lips and blow out through your mouth as if you are blowing on a flame just enough to make it flicker but not go out. Let your inhale meet your exhale naturally. You may find that as you relax, you naturally pause between the inhale and exhale. Imagine that you are inhaling into your belly, low and slow. With each exhale, imagine your shoulders gently falling with a soft and comfortable heaviness, your arms and legs warming up and feeling slightly heavy. Just let it go.
You’ve got this!