My Best Travel Anxiety Tips- The Adventuring Millennial

Most people who know me know I struggle with anxiety.

It’s part of my day to day life. I’ve dealt with it since high school. Sure, it’s manageable, but it’s not fun.

And unfortunately, my anxiety extends to traveling.

Yes, I am a travel blogger. And I’ve traveled all over the world. But I still face crippling travel anxiety from time to time. I like to keep my travel blog + Instagram light and relaxed. I want to share travel tips, guides, and highlights. But today I want to get a bit more vulnerable about the travel anxiety I experience.

Obviously I’m not a doctor or licensed in any way. So please, don’t avoid getting the help you need if you also deal with anxiety.

With this post, I want to open up about my experiences to show that even travel bloggers can face travel anxiety. Plus, keep reading for my best travel anxiety tips that have helped me the most.

How Do I Define Travel Anxiety?

My definition might be different than yours. And thats ok. But for me, anxiety is that fluttering feeling in my stomach and throat that just won’t go away. I feel slightly nauseous, sweaty, and scattered. It can be paralyzing. Or, it can kick me into high gear and force me to run around trying to do a million things at once.

So what causes this sensation? For me, it varies. But getting out of my comfort zone and changing my plans really triggers my anxiety. And guess what, that’s exactly what travel is all about. Which is why I continue to travel. I need to challenge myself to face my anxiety head on. But that doesn’t make it any easier when I start to feel anxious.

Triggers + My Best Travel Anxiety Tips

After reflecting for a while, I’ve narrowed down 8 travel topics that trigger my anxiety. Let’s look at each one and discuss how I deal with them.

Deciding When and Where to Go

Yes, my travel anxiety kicks in even before I leave for a trip. Maybe FOMO and Instagram are influencing this bout of anxiety, but I can easily feel anxious when selecting a travel destination. Questions fill my head and I second guess my destinations. Is it the right time of year to go to? Will I have enough time to explore? Am I missing out on something better? Should I save this trip for another time?

Tip: For me, I’ve learned to listen to my gut (not my anxiety). If I find a great travel deal I just make the trip happen. Why spend time second-guessing my decisions when I could move on to prepping for the trip. I’ve learned there isn’t a perfect time or place to go. But if I want to go somewhere, and I can make it happen, I need to jump in and do it.

Planning

I love planning. Creating itineraries and lists brings me so much joy. But when my plans fall through, I face some intense anxiety. When I first started traveling, I planned my trips to the minute. I knew exactly where I wanted to be and when. But (surprise, surprise) these itineraries didn’t work out. Plans changed and I wasn’t always cool with that. I spent time on my trips being upset about the messed up plans instead of enjoying where I was.

Tip: I’m still working on this, but I’m learning to be more spontaneous. No, I’m not giving up itineraries and plans completely. It’s still important to me to research my destinations and decide on the major things I want to see. But, I am letting go of rigid itineraries that don’t leave room for flexibility. I’m learning that plans change and often, this is for the better. Accepting the flow of travel has only made my trips better.

Price

Price is a big one for me. And sometimes, there’s no way around it. Traveling costs money. As I’m booking flights, Airbnbs, and budgeting for meals, my trips start to add up. Often, I panic. Should I cancel my trip? Only eat peanut butter sandwiches for lunch? Who do I think I am planning this kind of trip?

Tip: Something I mentioned earlier also applies here. I have to trust myself. Yes, traveling costs money. But it also costs money to stay at home. Sure, not the same amount of money, but I’m always spending money. When I start to get anxious about the price of a trip, I have to step back and remind myself that this is how I’ve chosen to spend my money. I save and budget in so many aspects of my life. I’m not one to buy new clothes or the latest electronics. And I always look for deals when I travel. Scott’s Cheap Flights, Priceline Express, and Megabus are just some of my budget travel go-to’s. I just have to accept that I’m going to spend money but know that this is what I want to do with the money I’ve earned and saved.

Judgement

After booking a trip, I start to get anxious about what others will think. I can hear the opinions swirling around in my head. “Oh, you are traveling again?” “Dang, how can you afford that?” “Must be nice to have so much vacation time.”

Tip: Woah, who cares. Seriously. If I can and want to travel, then I am going to travel. This is how I’ve chosen to live my life. And guess what, most of the time people are not actually judging me. I just place those thoughts in my head before giving anyone a chance to give their actual opinion. And sure, maybe people do judge me or do ask these types of questions. But they might be genuinely curious about how I travel because they want to do the same thing. It takes a lot of energy to be worried about what others think of me so this is something I’ve decided to stop focusing on.

Getting to Destination

Once I leave for a trip, a new type of anxiety sets in. What if I don’t make it to my destination. What if I miss my flight or can’t figure out the public transportation system. I never have a data plan when traveling internationally, so what if I can’t find WIFI and don’t have a way to use GoogleMaps or my phone???

Tip: See my mantra up there? What if. Gross. Yes, there are tons of unknowns when I travel. But just think how boring life would be if I knew exactly what was going to happen all the time. No thank you. So yes, I might miss a connecting flight. Or I might get turned around on the metro. But that’s ok. I always figure out how to adjust and get to my destination (even if it is much later than I was anticipating). So I just have to ease into the what if’s of traveling and trust that everything will work out.

Safety

Of course safety is important. But this goes back to my nagging “what if’s.” I start panicking before I even take a trip. What if something happens on my flight? What if I feel unsafe or uncomfortable when I get to my destination.

Tip: Unless I want to stay locked up in my apartment, I’m never going to be completely safe. And that’s just life. But I make sure to stay smart and aware of my surroundings. If something feels off, I do what I can to get out of the situation.

Language Barriers

Language barriers are a huge part of traveling. Unless I only visit English speaking countries, I’m going to find myself in situations where I don’t understand the language. And that can be stressful. Navigating a foreign subway system or trying to order food when you don’t speak the language is challenging.

Tip: But that’s just it, language barriers are a challenge. They are a chance to stretch myself and grow. I get a brief taste for what some people experience every single day. And if I don’t understand what is happening, that’s ok. I learn how to be resourceful and manage to get where I’m going anyways.

Social Media

Finally, let’s address social media. Instagram and Pinterest have created some serious travel anxiety in my life. Scrolling gives me serious FOMO and I start to think, “why am I even trying to be a travel blogger?” I don’t have a fancy camera or nice clothes or the energy to spend hours taking the perfect insta-worthy model shot. Should I just give up. Stop traveling because I’m never going to be a good enough traveler?

Tip: Hell no. Instagram makes it way too easy to compare myself to others. But I have to take a step back and remind myself that I don’t have to be like everyone else. And there are plenty of travelers who don’t do it just for Instagram. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to throw judgment at those social media travel stars. I just have to remind myself that I started this journey to share my experiences, not to conform to what everyone else is doing. And I’ve met some pretty amazing like-minded travelers along the way.

How Traveling Has Helped

So, as you can see, I experience some pretty intense patches of anxiety. But even though traveling can trigger my anxiousness, it has also drastically improved my overall mental health. As I’ve traveled and things have gone wrong, I’ve adjusted and moved on. In the process I’ve realized it’s ok for plans to change and that stepping outside of my comfort zone is a GOOD thing.

I want to continue working on this, because I’m no where near perfect. But I know that the only way for me to work on this is to keep traveling. This is what I love to do and I want to continue pursuing my passions and I won’t let my anxiety hold me back.

If you made it to the end of this post, thank you. I don’t always share vulnerable posts like this so it means a lot that you took the time to read about my travel anxiety tips. Have you ever experienced travel anxiety? Feel free to share your experience below.