The Science Behind Why Vacations Make Us Healthier

For years, I took a strange kind of pride in how much vacation time I accumulated.

Rather than using all of my paid time off, I would carry it over from year to year. In my mind, I was winning: work hard, save those vacation days, and someday they might be paid out in one satisfying lump sum.

Looking back, I'm not sure what game I thought I was winning.

I was trading something incredibly valuable, like time to rest, experience life, and reconnect with myself and others, for a fictitious prize rooted largely in my own ideas about productivity and what it meant to work hard.

Research gives us good reason to rethink that bargain.

The American Psychological Association has found that most workers report positive effects after taking time away from work, including improved mood, greater energy, increased motivation, reduced stress, and even better productivity and quality of work upon returning. (American Psychological Association)

That's important because prolonged stress isn't simply unpleasant. Chronic stress can affect sleep, concentration, mood, cardiovascular health, and other aspects of our physical and mental well-being. (American Psychological Association)

Time away gives us an opportunity to interrupt that cycle.

And travel can offer something beyond rest. It changes our environment and routines. We encounter unfamiliar places, people, foods, ideas, and experiences. We have conversations we wouldn't have at home. We spend uninterrupted time with partners, friends, or family or perhaps reconnect with ourselves. Research also suggests that shared positive experiences can have emotional and physiological benefits, including reduced stress responses. (American Psychological Association)

Of course, one vacation can't compensate for a life dominated by chronic stress. Even the benefits of time away can fade after we return to our routines. (American Psychological Association)

But perhaps that's precisely the point.

Vacation shouldn't be the reward we allow ourselves after working hard enough. Rest, discovery, play, connection, and time away are part of creating a life that sustains us.

I no longer see unused vacation days as a badge of honor.

I'd much rather collect experiences than PTO.

Travel certainly can be a luxury. But making time to step away from our routines, restore ourselves, and experience more of life?

That's an investment in our well-being.