Travel

Importance of Travelling – It’s Impact on Mental Health

Do you ever feel like a rat stuck in a maze? Do you ever have the urge to run away from the environment you are living in? Do you ever feel stuck or held back? These are the times when one dreams about going on a trip. When we feel stuck in a rut is when we dream about that ‘One Day’ when we will be able to take a few days off to have a change of environment.

Staying in the same environment for a prolonged period can be overwhelming. Mundane tasks and rituals leave us feeling purposeless in life, which gets manifested into larger problems. Staying stuck can make on forget to enjoy daily tasks as it becomes not just a way of living but an automated way to perform tasks without any realisation. We forget what the bigger picture looks like! Staying out in the comfort zone begins to feel uncomfortable.

Traveling is not just spending some money for a run-away. It is more of enriching the experiences in life and strengthening mental health.
Travelling is a surreal experience which brings with it comfort and relaxation, not just to the physical tensions, but also releases mental build-ups.

1. Emotional Agility

It is the ability to not react spontaneously or impulsively to a stimulus; it is careful collection of information and understanding the possible causes before reacting to any stimulus. Travelling enhances the level of tolerance and teaches us how to manage impromptu situations thoughtfully. We get to learn how to appropriately display verbal and non-verbal signs of emotion. Travelling teaches us to navigate through unforeseen situations and more effectively through the known ones.

2. Empathy

We become more empathetic and suspend the agenda of making judgements until and unless full information is required. Travelling enhances the thrust for gaining complete knowledge and makes us less prey to forming judgements. Travelling teaches us to gain in depth knowledge and not just trust surface information, as “the surface can just be a mirage!”

3. Creativity

Travelling enhances creativity. It enhances our sensitivity to change, thereby making us flexible to responses and ideologies. Creativity is related to neuroplasticity of the brain, hence being open-minded to embrace different ways of living enhances our expectancies about life, making us creative about our decisions.

4. Personality

Putting out of our comfort zone where we have to adapt to different and dynamic situations in an unaccustomed place helps us to evolve to a more expansive human being. This strengthens the ‘openness’ dimension of the personality, thereby improving agreeableness and extroversion aspects too. Evolving to be more diverse helps us become less reactive to external stimulus and strong to deal with unexpected situations.

5. Relationships

Travelling strengthens relationships. It increases closeness between couples and helps them realise each other’s perceptions, interests and goals in life. Couples get to focus on their relation and on each other, which they must have been missing out due to too much pressure of daily activities and under all the burden of responsibilities. Travelling reignites romance between couples and rekindles the lost spark of their relationship. It not just adds on to new experiences together but reminds us of the feelings and emotions shared during the initial phase of the relationship, giving couples an anchor to their relationship.

Travelling brings us closer to ourselves. It helps us look within and realise what we have been missing and being away from daily stressors, pressures and activities gives us time to mend it and rejuvenate ourselves. We need not travel far to experience joy, togetherness and liveliness, it’s just how you make every moment spent worth it.

Roads lead you away from hassles and brings you closer to yourself!

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