Post-vacation Syndrome: the trauma of returning to routine

It is common that, upon returning from vacation, we experience Post-vacation Syndrome.

It is not uncommon that, when returning to the routine after a period of vacation, we experience Post-vacation syndrome. Today we explain everything you need to know about this disorder.

What is Post-holiday Syndrome?

One of the most important indicators of well-being from a psychological and mental health point of view is the individual's ability to adapt to his or her environment. When there are difficulties in adapting, people often feel a state of discomfort. One of the moments typically known for its difficulty of adaptation for the general population is the return from vacationThe time when the person must return to his or her usual routine with the responsibilities and demands of day-to-day life.

Faced with this adaptive challenge, many people experience feelings of melancholy and irritability as a form of psychological resistance to adaptation.as a form of psychological resistance to adaptation. When this state is prolonged in excess or manifests itself in a very intense form, we speak of Post-holiday Syndrome.

Symptoms of the Post-holiday Syndrome

The Post-holiday syndrome usually manifests with low mood, anxiety and/or anguish, irritabilityThe symptoms of post-vacation syndrome include low mood, anxiety and/or anguish, irritability, restlessness, insecurity, difficulties in concentration and sleep rhythms (both by defect and excess), etc., and sometimes depressive symptoms may appear, such as apathy, lack of interest, lack of motivation and other similar symptoms.

On a physical level, some of the somatizations that can appear are tiredness, lack of appetite, sweating, Nausea and other stomach problems. These symptoms disappear when regularizing work and rest schedules, so it is a temporary discomfort that usually does not last more than a week or fifteen days. If this syndrome were to last longer, it could develop into an adaptive disorder or a seasonal affective disorder.

Who is affected by the Post-Vacation Syndrome?

According to the SEMYFC (Spanish Society of Community Medicine and Family), the people most affected by Post-holiday Syndrome are:

• Men and women, in similar proportion, between 40 and 45 years old.

• People who return to work, without having enjoyed a transition period.

• It affects more the longer the vacation period has been.

• Individuals who idealize the vacation period as the peak of their personal well-being.

• People who are unmotivated at work and who show discomfort and apathy in their daily work activities.

• Subjects with typical Burnout Syndrome tend to suffer from a more pronounced Post-vacation Syndrome.

How to cope better with the return to work?

In general to have a positive positive attitude always helps, in these moments it is important to try to maintain it and not to recreate the feeling of discomfort that the return to work produces. Give us an interpretation of the symptoms as a passing discomfort, and do not give it too much importance.

Since it is likely that we have changed the schedules of our body during the holiday period, it is beneficial to try to regulate our biorhythms, it is beneficial to try to regulate our biorhythm to that of our daily routine.To achieve this, it is advisable to try to go to bed at the same time the days before the end of the vacation, eat regularly and gradually introduce other routine habits.

If you have the option to do so, it is preferable to not to start on a MondayIn this way, the week will be shorter and the change from inactivity to work activity will occur gradually. Once incorporated into working life, the intensity of work activity should be regulated as much as possible.

Another, more motivating way to return to work and resume the obligations of the rest of the year is to to take advantage of the charge of energy and the sensation of well-being that the vacations have brought to propose new goals, as much in the labor field as in the field of work.We can also take advantage of the energy and sense of wellbeing that the holidays have brought to propose new goals, both in the work field and in the other areas of our lives that push us forward and help us grow as a person.