12 Reasons Why Traveling Makes Us Happy
Dreaming of a vacation? Did you know that dreaming of a vacation actually gives your brain a boost of happy feelings. According to the Institute for Applied Positive Research there is a direct connection between the anticipation of a trip and greater happiness. Just knowing you have a vacation in the future makes us happier. Having a planned vacation also helps to keep us motivated to continue to work hard until it's time for that special get away. Below are the many reasons why traveling has such an impact on our happiness.
1. Finding Solitude
With our everyday hectic lifestyle that we all seem to have, being able to get away from everything can provide us with a sense of peace. I don't know about you but when I'm home, my mind seems to be overwhelmed by the endless amount of responsibilities. And with this, I feel stressed. Hitting the road and seeing land that goes on for miles seems to change my perception of what's important. This type of solitude and change in the way I see things helps to put my mind at ease, therefore making me feel happier.
2. New Experiences
Travel tends to push you out of your comfort zone. When people stay home, they are content to do the same routine out of necessity and also out of comfort. When you're on vacation, away from the safe feelings of your home, you're more apt to try new experiences. Once you face your fears and build a sense of confidence from your accomplishments of trying new activities, you're going to feel amazing. Your happiness from that experience will be remembered long after your vacation.
3. Disconnect from Social Media
Always being connected to a device automatically adds additional stress to your life. Pulling the plug so to speak will instantly put your mind at ease and allow your mind to slow down. Stepping away from social media frees up time to see the world around you. Traveling to a new place is the perfect reason to take a break from social media. If you want to share pictures, save them and share them after your vacation or later in the evening. Enjoy that spectacular scenery while you can. If it's hard for you to separate from your phone, find a place with no internet connection.
4. Quality Time with Family
I'm not sure what it's like in your family but spending quality time with my family can be tricky, especially when we're all running in different directions. Our vacations allow us to slow down and enjoy each other's company. Family vacations are the best way to ensure you're spending time with the people you love and also keeping your family bond strong. Remember, the happy memories you make with your family will last a lifetime.
5. Surprise of the Unknown
Who doesn't love an adventure? Seeing new places and experiencing new surroundings allows you to feel like anything is possible. For me, I love the excitement I feel when I finally reach the top of a mountain and see the amazing view. This surprise of the unknown makes me feel happy in the moment and later when I reflect back on my vacation.
6. Improves Creativity
Being creative is important for all jobs. Creativity allows people to see things in a new perspective or to think outside of the box. Having a creative mind also helps to solve problems easier. I find that we tend to lose our creativity when we are bogged down and feeling stressed. By traveling and removing ourselves from our stressful lives we are able to so to speak restart our minds. Refreshing our minds and spirits will improve creativity and therefore increase happiness.
7. Emotional Well-Being
In this fast paced world that we all live in, being productive seems to be what constantly pushes us. This push of "results" never includes a pause button to slow down. We need to be able to slow down for our mental health. If we constantly keep pushing ourselves we will eventually feel burned out. Traveling allows us to slow down, pause, and be able to allow of minds to refresh themselves. Part of being happy is feeling mentally happy.
8. Loving Your Home Again
We all love our homes but like everything we love, we tend to take it for granted. Sometimes all we need to appreciate our homes again is to leave it for awhile. I don't know about you, but seeing the same scenery on the inside of my house as well as the outside seems to get boring and I long for something new. This will all change after leaving my house for a few weeks. After I come back home, I begin to appreciate my comfy bed, my well stocked refrigerator, and my cozy nights on the couch. If you want to love and appreciate your home again, leave it for a little while and soon you'll be happy loving your home again.
9. Extra Sunlight
I tend to crave extra sunlight. Where I live, our days filled with sunshine are far and few between. One of the most exciting parts of travel for me is to be able to travel to a place with more sunshine. I tend to plan all of our travel adventures outside where we get to experience the sunshine all day. There is something about the sun that just makes people happy. I'm sure the extra Vitamin D helps too. But don't take my word for it, get out there and get some extra sunlight. I think you'll be happier that you did.
10. Learning
When we started to travel, learning was our main goal. For me, I wanted to help my children fill in the educational gaps that sometimes occur, plus I didn't want my kids to experience summer brain drain. Traveling to historic places, seeing geological formations up close, learning about constellations in an international dark sky, digging for fossils, searching for petroglyphs are just a few of the activities to keep any mind engaged. Traveling allows you to learn beyond what you read in a textbook. Learning new information in a fun way will make your brain more active which will then make you feel happier.
11. Connections from the Past
I don't know about you but for me I love traveling to old ghost towns, ancient Native American dwellings, or the older parts of a city. Being able to envision myself in someone else's shoes for a moment allows me to understand their struggles. As I begin to understand their struggles and hardships, suddenly my struggles seem to fade away. When you begin to understand the past, the future seems clearer. Making connections from the past allows you to see your problems in a whole new perspective. This new perspective will provide relief and decrease stress which in turn produces happiness.
