{"id":50441,"date":"2016-06-21T11:15:07","date_gmt":"2016-06-21T15:15:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/?p=50441"},"modified":"2021-05-18T09:44:32","modified_gmt":"2021-05-18T13:44:32","slug":"how-to-relax-vacation-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/lifestyle\/how-to-relax-vacation-time\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Ways to Actually Unplug on Vacation"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo: Pond5<\/a><\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After months of lamenting to your friends, coworkers and cats that, \u201cUgh, I need<\/em> a vacation\u201d \u2014 but refusing to take one \u2014 you\u2019ve finally given in and put in for a few much-needed PTO days<\/a>. Hooray!<\/p>\n

But if your first question is \u201cCan I get WiFi?\u201d you\u2019re not alone. In a culture where we earn our vacation days yet don\u2019t always take them, it can be difficult to let go, unplug and relax once we\u2019re physically out of the office. But it\u2019s so important.<\/p>\n

\u201cTaking time off allows us to physically, mentally and emotionally recharge, and allows us to gain perspective, which boosts our creativity when we return,\u201d says Brandon Smith<\/a>, also known as \u201cThe Workplace Therapist\u201d and faculty member at Emory University\u2019s Goizeuta Business School.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how to snap into vacation mode ASAP so you don\u2019t waste half your trip trying to chill.<\/p>\n

RELATED<\/strong>: How to Get the Most Out of Your PTO<\/a><\/p>\n

8 Ways to Make Your Vacation Time Totally Worth It<\/strong><\/h3>\n

1. Stay within your budget.
\n<\/strong>If a two-week European luxe vacation is out of the question, consider a long weekend or opt for a resort within driving distance. \u201cTaking shorter breaks more frequently can be more beneficial than just taking one long break once every year or two,\u201d says Melanie Greenberg<\/a>, PhD, a clinical psychologist in California and author of the upcoming book The Stress-Proof Brain<\/em>. You don\u2019t want to return from your trip to a negative bank account balance, which will no doubt cause even more stress than what you had before you left.<\/p>\n

2. Get yourself in order before you go.
\n<\/strong>You\u2019re not going to be able to chill and eat cake by the ocean if you\u2019re thinking about that deadline you missed or the email you were supposed to send. \u201cTry to work extra hard before you leave, and let people know you\u2019ll be gone,\u201d says Greenberg. Smith adds, \u201cIn addition to setting your out-of-office notifications, provide a person that can be reached in your absence.\u201d (Just be sure to give that person a heads up.)<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>7 Fitness Retreats You Can Actually Afford<\/a><\/p>\n

3. Remind yourself that, yes, you deserve a vacation.
\n<\/strong>People tend to feel guilty for taking time away for themselves. But don\u2019t! \u201cRelaxation<\/a> is something we often view as only appropriate for the weekends or vacation time,\u201d says Lodro Rinzler<\/a>, chief spiritual officer and co-founder of MNDFL in New York City. Rinzler reminds us that we need to take breaks during the week, too, and enjoy the things that make us feel relaxed and happy.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor many of us, the fact that we\u2019re physically and emotionally unable to relax during the week takes a toll on our bodies. We need<\/em> to walk away from our work life for a bit in order to recharge and come back<\/a> to full health.\u201d<\/p>\n

4. Don\u2019t worry about what you should<\/em> be doing.
\n<\/strong>In an Instagram<\/a> and Snapchat<\/a>-driven world, there\u2019s this idea that you should either be super active, totally lazy or whatever other idea you have in your head about what a vacation should be. However you choose to spend your time off, make sure that it serves your interests.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor some people, that\u2019s being next to a pool. For others, it\u2019s climbing a mountain,\u201d Greenberg says. \u201cUse your vacation to build healthy habits and spend time with people you love. Don\u2019t use your time visiting relatives who stress you out or trying to run around catching up on household errands. Just focus on recovering from your everyday stress.\u201d<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>5 Easy Tips for Healthy Travel<\/a><\/p>\n

5. If a problem pops up while you\u2019re away, redirect it.
\n<\/strong>To put it lightly, stuff happens. \u201cIf you discover a burning fire during your vacation, don\u2019t tackle it yourself,\u201d says Smith. \u201cPass it on to others, and remind yourself that you\u2019re on vacation.\u201d Repeat after us: Vacation is not a dirty word!<\/p>\n

6. Try meditating.
\n<\/strong>Need help unplugging while on vacation? Do a quick 10-minute meditation<\/a> to start your day. You can\u2019t <\/em>meditate while Snapchatting. \u201cMeditation can help you work with whatever stressful situations come up in life,\u201d says Rinzler. \u201cIt\u2019s been scientifically proven to reduce stress, relax the body, normalize sleep, and boost the immune system.\u201d<\/p>\n

7. Set some connectivity ground rules \u2014 and abide by them!
\n<\/strong>Whether you need to check on the kids or get back to a few clients, we can\u2019t always escape the real world entirely. \u201cSome of us have no choice but to monitor what\u2019s happening at work or back home,\u201d says Greenberg. \u201cTry to keep this to a minimum and check email only once or twice a day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other guidelines you can set for yourself: checking and answering email for only 30 minutes a day before logging off. Or, limiting Instagram scrolling to five minutes each day but maybe avoiding other apps. \u201cIf you want to post a photo of your perfect vacay, fine, but post it and walk away,\u201d Rinzler says. Don\u2019t fall down the rabbit hole of going through every friend\u2019s account.<\/p>\n

RELATED: <\/strong>7 Tips to Actually Succeed at Your Digital Detox<\/a><\/p>\n

8. Ease back into reality.
\n<\/strong>Try to schedule your flight back home on a Friday or Saturday, so you have time to readjust to real life. \u201cPlan a re-entry day that serves as a buffer between your vacation and your first day back to work,\u201d says Smith. \u201cThis day should be used to catch up on email and prepare for going back to work. This will relieve pressure to check your email while you\u2019re gone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ultimately, says Greenberg, \u201cSome stress when coming back to work is unavoidable. Integrate healthy and pleasurable activities into your everyday life after vacation \u2014 and every day, ideally \u2014 so you\u2019re not always reliant on vacation to de-stress.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hit the social media snooze button and put your out-of-office message up because it\u2019s time to unplug. Follow these tips to take full advantage of your vacation time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":77,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,12,15],"tags":[187,282,90,341,378,174,118],"class_list":["post-50441","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lifestyle","category-mental-health","category-stress","tag-happiness","tag-stress","tag-summer","tag-tax1living-well","tag-tax2happiness","tag-travel","tag-vacation"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50441","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/77"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50441"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50441\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50441"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50441"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyburn.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50441"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}