7 legit, expert-backed reasons to count travel as a healthy habit |
Travel is often viewed as an indulgence or a luxury, one of life’s “extras” that make life more enjoyable. But what if travel were beneficial enough to be considered a healthy habit, right alongside eating well, exercising, and getting enough sleep?
Getting away from home is certainly not a necessity for survival (though avid travelers may argue otherwise). But travel offers a range of mental, emotional, social, and physical health benefits that might shift how we see it. If you’re on the fence about taking the trip or trying to justify it to yourself, we talked to some health experts to back you up.
The mental health benefits of travel
A boost in neuroplasticity
Dr. MaryEllen Eller, a board-certified psychiatrist with Radial Health, tells Upworthy that being in a new environment and exploring new things reinforces our sense of self-efficacy and builds our confidence. It also affects our brains.
“The process of going to new places and seeing new things improves our brain’s ability to pay attention to the things that matter most,” she said. “The process of novelty and exploring new experiences increases the release of dopamine and helps boost neuroplasticity.”
Getting away from stuck patterns and mental chatter
“What I see consistently in my work is that travel does something therapy alone sometimes can’t,” said Emily Woods, a licensed psychotherapist and co-owner of Pure Direction. “It physically removes people from the environments and routines that reinforce their stuck patterns. The nervous system responds to novelty, and getting out of a familiar context can interrupt anxiety loops, low-grade depression, and the kind of emotional numbness that creeps in when life feels too predictable.”
Woods tells Upworthy that navigating a new place can also help quiet the “mental chatter” that often runs in the background of our minds.
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Hear your desires for once. ♬ original sound – AhmadTalks
The social health benefits of travel
Strengthening relationships
Anyone who’s been on a family trip might question whether it had a positive or negative effect on their relationships. Travel often comes with challenges that can test our patience with one another. However, clinical counselor supervisor and founder of Therapy Trainings, Matt Grammer, LPCC-S, tells Upworthy that the shared experiences and........