Seven signs that you need a holiday and what to do!
It has been another very hot week in London while the temperatures are predicted to rise even further. This is an apt reminder that we are in midsummer, but unfortunately, for some of us there is some way to go before having a well-deserved break. Of course, it is a fallacy that a holiday is just pure, unadulterated pleasure and as we know a number of things can go wrong, but even when they don’t, we always end up carrying our feelings and complexity with us along with our luggage. In any case, there are times in life, where one needs to stop working and striving and to allow time and space for being and hopefully, a significant degree of fun and pleasure. In the spirit of this time of the year when either we are on holiday or we badly need one, here is a lighter list of seven signs that you need a holiday and what to do about it:
- A significant number of people around you make you feel irritated, resentful, burdened, bitter or all of the above at once!
What to do: Abstain from expressing these feelings if they seem to come up repeatedly for you, as chances are this is your own material that you need to process first before lashing out. Swimming in the sea imagery may help here!
- You wake up feeling tired or wake up in the middle of the night or find it hard to fall asleep or all of the above together (hot weather doesn’t help here!)
What to do: Try slow breathing thinking of all the colours found in a tropical sunset, orange, red, purple, pink…
- None of your favourite foods tastes exciting any longer and even having cocktails with friends watching the world go by leaves you indifferent.
What to do: This is a red flag that you may be clinically depressed, but perhaps try booking a holiday before making a final assessment on this. If booking a holiday also leaves you unexcited, seek help!
- You have to make several phone calls in your spare time between work meetings chasing your GP, your dentist, a lost parcel at your local post office, a refund that has not come through and trying to prevent fraud or spam ruining your computer or your bank account or all of the above at once!
What to do: Transport yourself immediately to your favourite beach with a thrilling novel in your hands. Seek out this novel now and spend your evening reading it and not looking at your email. The alternative is heading for a breakdown!
- The thought of arranging to meet friends feels like yet another burden or your cancel meeting your friends at the last minute telling them that you have covid or you end up really having covid and you think to yourself that at least now you can rest.
What to do: You are really burned out and need a holiday or at least a restful couple of days now!
- The inside of your fridge has become a foreign unexplored country or a cemetery of long deceased food or a place you visit just to drink water or some other beverage.
What to do: One of the key pleasures of a good holiday is the various levels of aesthetic connection with one’s body, another’s body, nature, food it can provide you with. Connecting with our bodily and aesthetic needs is something we should try to do every day and not just when on holiday! Begin exploring the inside of your fridge as though it is an exotic new destination!
- You suffer from holiday anxiety which means that it seems too stressful to travel, to pack your bag, to organise activities for your holiday or simply to think about going away at all.
What to do: Begin visualising your holiday for ten minutes every day. What will it feel like to get there, what will you do, what are you going to wear, what the weather or landscape will feel like? Most importantly: Get there!
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