Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
PTSD
A reaction to a traumatic event.
Post-Travel Stress Disorder.
PTSD
A reaction to returning from a year of travel.
We've been back for 2 months and it hasn't been pretty. In fact, it's been pretty awful. It's been disorientating, stressful, disappointing, depressing, boring...in fact the polar opposite of everything we experienced on our travels.
For the 5 of us, each one has coped differently. The kids seem least affected on the surface, they are back into daily routines, they are certainly enjoying being back amongst family and friends but now have to deal with the trials and tribulations of peer pressure, managing the complexities of immature WhatsApp relationships and rebuilding friendships. It's not easy.
For Shoshi, having started back at work within just a few short days of our return was both a blessing and a curse. She had less time to lament our return but on the other hand she has gone from the sublime to the ridiculous, from freedom to the classroom, from stress-free mornings to the 6am alarm clock. It's not easy.
For me, it's been nothing short of a nightmare. Returning when I wanted to keep on travelling. Returning back to the mundane, the pressure-cooker life that is Israel, the lack of excitement, of 'wow', of anything. I've literally returned to days of nothing. Having sold my company, I'm now looking for a new path, a new business venture to start, but that is proving very tough to think about when I have very little motivation and energy. Being a house husband isn't the ideal way to spend one's time after a year of travel. It's tedious, dull, although ironically quite easy.
A year ago when we left, we were full of excitement, energy, optimism and anticipation of what was coming. We had hope. We spent our time researching new destinations, learning about new cultures. The return has left us with a huge void that we don't know how to fill. Instead of sharing those amazing experiences that bonded us as a family, now we share arguments over homework, household chores and arguments with moody children who behave like teenagers way before their time.
So where do we go from here, how to we get ourselves back on the 'up'?
For now we don't have the answer. We're thinking of all kinds of options, from the realistic to the fanciful. What we do know is that travelling made us happy and stopping travelling has had the opposite effect. The highs of travelling have been replaced by the lows of being home and it's quite traumatic.
Now I am perfectly aware that all of this sounds like the definition of 1st World Problems - how can these poor souls possibly deal with returning from a year-long 'vacation'? But the reality is that long-term travelling opens a Pandora's Box of issues, raising questions for the present and the future that are tough to answer. The modern world offers us such a multitude of choices that it can be overwhelming, throwing up so many questions for how we live our lives and where we live our lives. Travelling brings all of this into sharper focus and coming back home feels like getting hit in the stomach by a left hook from Mike Tyson.
So for anyone thinking of going away travelling - beware of PTSD, it's not fun!
(Photo for effect only, unfortunately we're not there right now!)
PTSD
A reaction to a traumatic event.
Post-Travel Stress Disorder.
PTSD
A reaction to returning from a year of travel.
We've been back for 2 months and it hasn't been pretty. In fact, it's been pretty awful. It's been disorientating, stressful, disappointing, depressing, boring...in fact the polar opposite of everything we experienced on our travels.
For the 5 of us, each one has coped differently. The kids seem least affected on the surface, they are back into daily routines, they are certainly enjoying being back amongst family and friends but now have to deal with the trials and tribulations of peer pressure, managing the complexities of immature WhatsApp relationships and rebuilding friendships. It's not easy.
For Shoshi, having started back at work within just a few short days of our return was both a blessing and a curse. She had less time to lament our return but on the other hand she has gone from the sublime to the ridiculous, from freedom to the classroom, from stress-free mornings to the 6am alarm clock. It's not easy.
For me, it's been nothing short of a nightmare. Returning when I wanted to keep on travelling. Returning back to the mundane, the pressure-cooker life that is Israel, the lack of excitement, of 'wow', of anything. I've literally returned to days of nothing. Having sold my company, I'm now looking for a new path, a new business venture to start, but that is proving very tough to think about when I have very little motivation and energy. Being a house husband isn't the ideal way to spend one's time after a year of travel. It's tedious, dull, although ironically quite easy.
A year ago when we left, we were full of excitement, energy, optimism and anticipation of what was coming. We had hope. We spent our time researching new destinations, learning about new cultures. The return has left us with a huge void that we don't know how to fill. Instead of sharing those amazing experiences that bonded us as a family, now we share arguments over homework, household chores and arguments with moody children who behave like teenagers way before their time.
So where do we go from here, how to we get ourselves back on the 'up'?
For now we don't have the answer. We're thinking of all kinds of options, from the realistic to the fanciful. What we do know is that travelling made us happy and stopping travelling has had the opposite effect. The highs of travelling have been replaced by the lows of being home and it's quite traumatic.
Now I am perfectly aware that all of this sounds like the definition of 1st World Problems - how can these poor souls possibly deal with returning from a year-long 'vacation'? But the reality is that long-term travelling opens a Pandora's Box of issues, raising questions for the present and the future that are tough to answer. The modern world offers us such a multitude of choices that it can be overwhelming, throwing up so many questions for how we live our lives and where we live our lives. Travelling brings all of this into sharper focus and coming back home feels like getting hit in the stomach by a left hook from Mike Tyson.
So for anyone thinking of going away travelling - beware of PTSD, it's not fun!
(Photo for effect only, unfortunately we're not there right now!)
You nailed it there. That's exactly what it's like. I cure it through trying to save the planet as much as I can. Growing and planting, helping and volunteering, that's how we've kept busy. We made the mistake of getting pets and yes, they help us get through each day, but long term they've made our lives so much harder. We split up and travel separately a lot now. I don't normally disclose that but , that's the work around that's working for us and keeping me sane. Where you talk about Shoshi keeping busy , that's it, no time to think. Most people on the merry go round of work / school/ chores never have time to think. We have that luxury and deep thought is the enemy of a conventional lifestyle.
ReplyDeleteDeep thought and an abundance of choice are the enemies of blissful ignorance. Certainly travel has opened a Pandora's Box which will be tough to close!
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