Vacationer's happier

“Sometimes the cure for restlessness is rest.” - Colleen Wainwright

“I pray you... Your play needs no excuse. Never excuse.” - William Shakespeare

Summer is nearly over for those of us in the upper Midwest of the US. So is vacation season done? Though parents of school-aged kids have likely already taken a family trip, possibly vacation doesn’t have to be out of the picture. Even if it’s a shorter jaunt, there is benefit in planning some time away from the everyday work routine.

Those benefits include:

-lowered stress and blood pressure

-increased creative thinking

-decreased depressive feelings

-greater happiness, especially preceding the vacation!

Here’s how the Sept 2010 issue of Health magazine says it ---

“Studies confirm that time off… relieves stress, lowering your blood pressure and your risk for heart disease. It also promotes creative thinking. And women in a 2005 study who took two or more vacations per year were less likely to be depressed than women who took one every two years…The length of a vacation had no bearing on how happy it made people, according to a recent study in the journal Applied Research in the Quality of Life. What’s more, the biggest thrill came before the vacation.”

This news encourages me. I’ve been pining for a LONG vacation since the beginning of this year. But here is data that suggests the short vacation will do just fine for the ‘happy’ factor! I can manage the time away for – and even have happily planned already – a few three- to five-day ‘get-aways’ this fall. The anticipatory “thrill” of looking forward to the fun is significant! And it's sounding like that anticipation is as good as (or nearly so) the engagement in the actual fun activity.

I've mentioned before an intent to enjoy and live into the present moment. I find it a rather interesting challenge to both be in now and grateful for this day, while also simultaneously anticipate good in the future days. Possibly this month might be opportunity to practice living in this moment while also appreciating both past and future moments? May gratitude, rest, vacations, and happy moments permeate your days!

It's useless to rise early and go to bed late, and work your worried fingers to the bone. Don't you know he enjoys giving rest to those he loves? Psalm 127:2 (The Message translation)

It's important to be heroic, ambitious, productive, efficient, creative, and progressive, but these qualities don't necessarily nurture the soul. The soul has different concerns, of equal value: downtime for reflection, conversation, and reverie; beauty that is captivating and pleasuring; relatedness to the environs and to people; and any animal's rhythm of rest and activity. - Thomas Moore (1779 - 1852)

PS: If interested, find the abstract of the “Vacationers Happier…” study in Applied Research in the Quality of Life below.

Applied Research in Quality of Life March 2010 Volume 5, Number 1, 35-47, DOI: 10.1007/s11482-009-9091-9 Vacationers Happier, but Most not Happier After a Holiday Jeroen Nawijn, Miquelle A. Marchand, Ruut Veenhoven and Ad J. Vingerhoets

Abstract The aim of this study was to obtain a greater insight into the association between vacations and happiness. We examined whether vacationers differ in happiness, compared to those not going on holiday, and if a holiday trip boosts post-trip happiness. These questions were addressed in a pre-test/post-test design study among 1,530 Dutch individuals. 974 vacationers answered questions about their happiness before and after a holiday trip. Vacationers reported a higher degree of pre-trip happiness, compared to non-vacationers, possibly because they are anticipating their holiday. Only a very relaxed holiday trip boosts vacationers’ happiness further after return. Generally, there is no difference between vacationers’ and non-vacationers’ post-trip happiness.