It is the most anticipated period of the year.
Put aside your obligations, don't let the alarm clock go off at any time, travel if you have the possibility or simply dedicate yourself to leisure wherever you are.
However, giving yourself fully to rest
does not seem to be a real possibility
for all people.
Although it seems simple from the formal point of view to divide the time of the year between work and vacations, the truth is that in mental terms this does not always happen.
This is the case of people who, in different ways and for different reasons, cannot disconnect from their usual routine, and who, in fact, vacations
can stress
.
In this sense, a term in English that labels the problem is becoming more and more popular:
stresslaxing
, which could be translated as the anxiety generated by the search for rest and relaxation.
Quite a paradox.
And although it is true that individual traits operate, it cannot be ignored that the context can help or not.
And if the data is addressed at the local level, we would be in an
unfavorable
scenario for workers.
As
Clarín
recently published, Argentines are the most "burned" in the region, since 86% say they experience burnout according to a regional study carried out by Bumeran in which almost 5,000 people participated.
Now, can this situation be counteracted?
How to put yourself in "vacation mode" to be able to disconnect?
What obstacles prevent many people from enjoying free time?
What
consequences
can it bring?
People with holiday stress have a hard time adjusting to change.
Photo Shutterstock.
What is holiday stress
"Vacation stress syndrome is a
disorder
caused by difficulty adapting to vacations. There is difficulty adapting to change. Not being able to disconnect from work, feeling that one has the obligation to enjoy and relax, living longer with the couple and the children changing their routine”, exemplifies Alexis Alderete, a psychologist specializing in Anxiety Disorders and Skills Training.
In turn, he explains that the
symptoms
are usually the appearance of anxiety, irritability, insomnia and headaches, "accompanied by a feeling of constant dissatisfaction and sadness".
Holiday stress affects people for whom work is an absolute priority.
Photo Shutterstock.
There are as many
ways of "not resting"
as there are people in this world: both those who set their alarm clock to "seize the day" in a tourist destination and do not stop scheduling plans compulsively, as well as those who during the holiday period try to finish with practically all the pending issues of the year (whether it is tidying up the whole house or paying off the annual medical check-ups).
In short, although the modalities change, the common denominator seems to be the same:
to reproduce the logic of productivity
at a time when we should be doing the opposite.
And not as an imperative, but as a necessity, because both the body and the mind demand at some point to "downshift" and work at a different pace.
"When we maintain the logic of daily obligations even on vacation and we can't slow down the activities in the brain,
periods of high stress prolonged
over time can generate feelings of sadness, demotivation, dissatisfaction, and irritability, we get angry about anything or even the slightest thing that someone makes a comment to us, emotions of anger appear," says Alderete.
This has a physiological correlate: "While working at an accelerated pace, levels of
cortisol and adrenaline
(the two stress-related hormones) are elevated. Adrenaline makes the immune system stronger and cortisol acts as a anti-inflammatory, so that we can endure long days".
One of the consequences is that the vacation period is lived with worry, tiredness and irritability.
Photo Shutterstock.
Causes of hyperconnectivity: the demands of work
Why are many people unable to disconnect from their work obligations on vacation, and are still
aware
of what is happening at work?
As noted above, the level of stress that is handled in jobs is not a minor fact, which usually causes pending issues to end up being resolved after hours.
“When a company continuously exposes its collaborators to an excessive workload, when they have little autonomy, when they are not listened to or when there is a lack of support from the environment;
All these situations can cause work teams to
always take work home
, not being able to finish their tasks during working hours”, says the study carried out by Bumeran, the online job classifieds company.
There it is also detailed that almost
9 out of 10
respondents in Argentina manifested symptoms of
burnout
, the highest figure obtained in the region.
To prepare, they recommend doing a digital detox.
Photo Shutterstock.
Personality characteristics
Meanwhile, from the individual level, some issues also operate at a subjective level, such as the feeling of omnipotence: "People have the firm belief that in their work they
are essential
and that no one is going to be able to perform their tasks better than them," he says. Alderate.
"Therefore -he continues-, it makes it difficult for them to be able to disconnect from their work even on vacation. In addition, the fear may appear that if I am not available all the time for my company, the possibility of being replaced and losing my job will appear. which raises anxiety levels."
Now, who are usually the candidates to suffer this type of stress?
“These types of problems are more common in
hyperdemanding people
.
Holiday stress affects people for whom work is everything and in their day to day they have little or no leisure time, nor do they have time for their family and children," says the psychologist.
What happens then in the leisure period borders on bewilderment: "Suddenly, when they are on vacation,
they don't know what to do
with all that free time, they don't know how to relax and enjoy it. When they run out of their routine of work and professional habits, the person becomes destabilized"
Work burnout provides an unfavorable context to enjoy rest.
Photo Shutterstock.
5 practical tips
What can you do to a person who can't relax on vacation because they can't stop thinking about work?
Digital detox.
“It is advisable to do a detoxification of technology the first days of vacation.
Notify the company that they do not send emails or messages to their cell phones, since they are going to enjoy the rest ”, suggests Alderete.
Finish with the earrings.
The psychologist says that prior to the vacation period, the ideal is to finish with as many pending tasks as possible.
"Otherwise the chances of receiving unexpected calls increase," he warns.
Slow down
.
“Leave aside the hours in which you moved during your working day, allow yourself to wake up later than usual, spend more time with your family.
Vacations must be planned in a flexible way and always thinking about what the person and their environment like to do.”
Do activity.
The practice of exercise generates the release of endorphins (hormone of happiness).
Sleep more, but not as much
.
“Don't spend the holidays sleeping.
You have to get enough sleep and take advantage of the day to enjoy yourself”, recommends the therapist.
To close, Alderete recalls that vacations are a fundamental part of the working year that
no person should skip
.
“They favor a disconnection from daily obligations and promote
better performance
when you return.
The fact that we feel well-being helps to prevent psychological illnesses, those of the nervous system and also of the muscular system caused by daily stresses”, she concludes.
***
Do you need to downshift?
In these notes you can find tips to achieve it:
➪Stress doesn't give you status: 10 anti-burnout tips to slow down and regain well-being
➪To sleep better: how to apply the technique of "letting go" and a step-by-step guided meditation
➪An exercise to lower self-criticism and treat yourself more kindly
➪The three minutes of full attention that can change your day
***
➪ Do you have any questions about health and well-being that you would like us to address in section notes?
Enter the Clarín Help Center by clicking here, enter
Message to the newsroom
and then
Questions to Buena Vida
.
Write us your query and send.
Ready
look also
Diego Golombek explains what small changes we can make to have good ideas and find better solutions in everyday life
The power to quit (and not just work), explained by a decision-maker
