I've got the blues - the post-travel blues

Earlier this week I was crashing hard after three weeks away on an awesome holiday to the US. I saw some unbelievable sights, had some memorable experiences, met some people and caught up with some who I'll be sure to remain in contact with and traversed the country top to bottom chasing storms. Then when I came back all I could do was intensely dwell on those good times. But while that should make me feel great, not actually still being out there was, and still is a bit, bringing me down. Everyone tells me I should be able to be happy and look at it fondly, but unfortunately it's not that easy. And the feeling down part isn't as simple as being "back in the real world" and back at work. Ironically when I got off the plane and came home I couldn't be happier to be back. Three weeks mostly folded up in tour vans really took it out of me and I know just the stormchasing did it for some people. I knew it wasn't just jet lag or re-adjusting to routines of sleeping and eating and working.

So I had a look around and found that the post-travel(/holiday/vacation) blues(/depression) is actually a proper, serious thing and I'm by no means alone in being a temporary PTB sufferer. It's something you really don't account for before you go on a lengthy trip, but as I've thought about it more and more I don't really think it's something you can stop either. There's no preventative measures you can take, other than trying not to have as much fun on your holiday as you planned. This would obviously negate the purpose of actually doing something enjoyable on your holiday. I figure the level of PTB you feel is exponentially proportionate to the time you spend away. I'm sure a cleverer mind than me would probably be able to plot it on a graph of some sort.

I read around a bit and found plenty of advice on how to tackle your post-travel blues. Some of it I feel wouldn't work for me. One website suggested it may be a case of getting the travel bug. I don't think this so much applies to me. I thought about the idea of another holiday in the making to give me something to look forward to, but I don't feel going to another far-off land really solves the problem. I will still feel the same about the trip I've just finished. Not that feeling really good about your experiences is a bad thing. It's hard to explain but just not being on THAT holiday anymore makes it hard when it's over since you don't when or if you will enjoy yourself that much again. Another suggestion was to take a language class. Not a bad idea. It's something I have considered. Another was to write about it, a box I have already ticked with this blog so far! Another is to keep in touch with people from your trip, which I have done and I have found has improved my mood. I guess that helps me in my thinking that my holiday will always last in some form. That the trip will in fact never end - it will always be part of my life. Knowing that certainly gives me comfort.

But what helped me was somewhat getting back to things that made me think more about the good times I was having before I even left on my trip. I found listening to a few songs I hadn't heard in a while really clicked with me. My band of choice was The Jezabels. Something about the passion and emotion in their music, dare I say, struck a chord with me this week. It wasn't before long I was in the car belting out one of their tunes (yep even I sing in the car, I know you all do too) and I instantly started feeling better. It really helped me. I needed it. It may not do it for others, but that's what it was for me.

Next time maybe I won't plan as long a trip and so maybe I won't feel PTB as badly next time. But for all of you going on long holidays, you might have to account for getting over it. But don't feel bad when it hits about the fact you're moaning after having a holiday while everyone else has been slaving away. Your feelings will be legitimate.

For those who know what I'm on about, I'd love to hear about your experience with PTB.

• Do you know what I'm on about? Have you had post-travel blues before? Have you recognised the correlation between length of trip and fondness of holiday? How long did it take you to fully recover? What steps did you take to do so?