Coping with Anxiety on Post-Confinement Vacation

With the arrival of good weather and the summer months, an important motivation for preparing for the holidays and enjoying them usually appears.

Destination search, planning and packing has never been more uncertain than this year. On the one hand, it is likely that the confinement has left a greater need to enjoy the freedom lost in these months, but On the other, it is reasonable that on an emotional level we are not 100% and that we never feel certain fears or worries before lived.

In the same way that during the quarantine we continuously heard the figures of new infections or the time that could be left to reach the desired flattening of the curve, now a new word is part of our day and can greatly affect holiday anxiety: the "new outbreak".

This is why we would like to explain a series of tips that will make this break a few days of real rest, keeping worries under control.

• Related article: "The 7 types of anxiety (characteristics, causes and symptoms)"

Tips for Holidays in the New Post-Lockdown Normal

Follow these guidelines to boost your emotional balance when it comes to managing anxiety on the post-confinement vacation.

1. Do not fall into the continuous comparison with other vacations

Just as it did not make sense to compare Easter this year with the previous one, with the summer holidays it is essential to continue in the same line. Just this way we will be able to adjust expectations to reality and avoid feelings of frustration if the situation is not how we had imagined it.

If we are not able to avoid that confrontation between vacations, then it will be necessary for all factors to come into play and therefore the comparison should also include all the limitations and deprivation of liberty that we have experienced during these months. Thus, we will be aware that we may not be facing the dream break but we will appreciate that it is more than we could imagine in recent times.

2. Encourage agreement among all who travel

To avoid tense situations on vacation, it will be essential to agree on a series of points that favor an effective organization. This, which should be expected regardless of the moment we are living, is especially important in trips with children where post-confinement life generates more significant changes that must be anticipated.

Despite the fact that the children have assumed with some naturalness the fact that their previous freedom has been recovered in a progressive and even the use of the mask or new hygiene habits, it is necessary to explain to them that they must continue to comply with preventive measures and notify them of those restrictions that will entail changes in their usual way of enjoying the holidays.

For adults, having a more developed emotional management, on many occasions it is difficult for us to assume it; therefore the little ones need clear orders and some flexibility with novel situations for them.

• You may be interested in: "Work-related stress: causes, and how to combat it"

3. Accept your new concerns

Has it never been a problem for you to ride an airplane and now you feel fear simply anticipating the situation? Are you scared of crowds on the beach when at another time you would not have thought about it? Do you feel that the need for control over observing the precautions of others overwhelms you? If any answer is yes you should not worry, is part of the emotional side effects that the coronavirus has left.

Not forcing yourself to be well is the main step to be able to enjoy yourself, it is necessary to be patient with yourself and understand that these worries appear after a time of great stress.

If at the health level everything continues to evolve in a positive way, stress will disappear and the body will no longer be in a situation of alarm to respond to the threat. The best ally will be time, but if you feel that the interference in your usual life is significant, do not forget to seek the help of a professional psychologist.

4. Don't force yourself if you think it's not the time

It is July, it is hot and your surroundings have their vacations organized, but if you feel that you are not ready or prepared to travel or that you will not be able to disconnect enough, put the social pressure aside and listen to yourself. Each person has their deadlines and level of concern and, of course, there is no effective and proven model for emotional recovery and preparation for a summer after confinement.

Traveling with the pressure that it is a moment of enjoyment when you are unable to disconnecting from what has been lived will generate the opposite effect, being able to produce in you a greater feeling of disappointment. Start by normalizing the departures in your usual environment and remember that your destination will still be there when you feel better.

5. Choose the plan that makes you feel more secure

The holiday offer has also undergone modifications after the confinement locating international tourism in a secondary option and prioritizing alternatives such as caravan trips or stays in rural houses within the country. The criterion that should have more weight in this decision is the security you feel in each of the possibilities.

You need to remember that if your emotional situation begins to pose limitations in your day-to-day life or is at a lower level than you would like, the help of professional psychologists will be essential for you to regain your previous level of well-being.

In this sense, the distance or the vacation period is not a problem, since online therapy allows you to communicate with a professional in a remote way. TherapyChat is the leading online psychology platform and the experience of its psychologists can be of great help to you.