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| Photo Credit: Anete Lūsina |
Hi everyone!
Since it's the summer holidays at the moment and everyone and their dog seems to have been or are going on holiday, I thought it would be a good opportunity to tell you about some of the ways I deal with my anxiety when travelling. This is something that I have struggled with in the past, and still do to some extent. However, over the past few years, I've travelled alone (particularly by plane) more times than I can even count and whilst I can by no means say that I no longer feel anxious when travelling, I've definitely found ways to make this a lot more manageable! Here are my top five tips for coping with travel anxiety...
1) TALK:
As I said, I travel on my own more often than not, however whenever I'm not alone I use this to my advantage. I find that one of the best ways to distract myself from the horrible nervous feeling settled in the pit of my stomach is to have a conversation. From my experience, talking about anything and everything really helps journeys to fly by (pardon the pun) and you'll find yourself arriving at your destination in next to no time.
2) STAY DISTRACTED:
On a similar note, I find that distraction is key to diminishing any feelings of uneasiness you may have about travelling. Whether this is by watching a film (shout out to Netflix's download feature!), listening to music, reading a book, playing a game on your phone or doing whatever else you fancy, distraction definitely makes the whole experience of travelling much smoother.
3) BE PREPARED:
I think that this tip is a given really, but it's still just as important! My family make fun of me because before I leave the house to go away I always check that I have everything I need at least 50 times - whatever makes you feel more at ease though! Knowing that I have money, my medication, travel documents and a bottle of water is comforting to me as it's one less thing to worry about. Also, I always make sure I have a packet of chewing gum or mints to hand, as this is something that relaxes me.
4) SEE IT AS AN EXCITING OPPORTUNITY:
As cliche as it sounds, simply having the means and the ability to travel is such a privilege in itself. Of course, that's not to say that your anxiety over travelling isn't valid, because I know first hand how truly awful it can be. But that doesn't mean that you can't try to view your journey as an opportunity rather than a chore...
5) THINK ABOUT YOUR DESTINATION:
Finally, I find that simply thinking about where I'm going to end up at the end of my journey calms me down to an extent; after all, every time I've flown so far in my life has either been to go on holiday or go and visit a friend. It makes it a lot easier for me to travel when I know it's for a good reason and that I'll have a great time once I get there; for example, I recently flew to Italy to see my boyfriend and was so nervous I thought I was going to pass out going through security, but getting to see him in the end made it all totally worth it.
Obviously, this is what works for me personally, so I can't guarantee that it'll work for everyone, but I really hope that if you struggle with travel anxiety then something in this post will help you in some way!
Do you have any different ways of coping with travel anxiety? Leave them in the comments if you do!
Becca x
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