Emotional De-Cluttering When Traveling

Work-related travel can be very stressful what with flight delays and missed connections and “confirmed” hotel reservations which apparently are not. There’s also the stress of continuing your work when you’re away from the familiar surroundings that help you feel grounded and facilitate productive working time. All that emotional clutter gets in the way and you can end up feeling drained of all energy by the end of your trip.

I had such an experience recently. There was a snafu with my airline reservation and I ended up having to wait for the next flight 3 hours later. I found myself driving in snow for the first time ever as I drove my rental car towards the hotel along unfamiliar roads with unclear directions off the internet. I overslept the next morning when I’d incorrectly set the needlessly complicated clock radio/CD/alarm unit provided by the establishment. Thankfully, the presentation went well despite all the emotional clutter going on in my head.

I had another trip coming up and didn’t want a repeat of what had just transpired. Not that I can prevent airline snafus and lost reservations, however, what I could do was ensure that my creature comforts would be taken care of and allow myself to decompress from the stress of traveling. I did four specific things:

• I made sure I would be able to do my needlework comfortably. As an avid needleworker, I generally carry a project around with me to help pass any unexpected waiting time more enjoyably. When traveling, however, I find it difficult to stitch in the hotel room in the evening (a relaxing part of my routine at home) because of the dim lighting I find in so many hotels these days. This time, I packed a 100 watt light bulb in my luggage and once settled in my room I swapped out the light bulbs and was able to enjoy stitching in the evenings. Remember to bring your light bulb back home with you!
   

• I packed supplies for bubble baths. A great way to relax—at home or while traveling--is with a nice long soak in a warm bath. I particularly enjoy scented water and the effervescence from bath tablets, so I packed up enough oils and tablets to enjoy a couple of baths. An added benefit turned out to be that since they were used up during the trip, I didn’t have to carry them back home in my luggage.
   

• I enjoyed candlelight. I like to enjoy the nice glow a room takes on when you burn a few tea light candles in decorative glass holders. I brought along two such holders on my trip, with extra tea light candles, and enjoyed them while soaking in the tub as well as while stitching in the evening. It’s perfectly fine to burn the candles even in non-smoking rooms; why not enjoy the ambiance?
   

• I used the wake-up call service. Instead of struggling to figure out the complicated mini-sound system units I find in hotels these days, and then stressing over whether the alarm would indeed go off when I needed it, I now ask the front desk to schedule my wake-up call. I sleep much better knowing that I’m unlikely to oversleep because I couldn’t figure out how to correctly set the alarm.

As it turned out, these tactics worked wonderfully to ameliorate the stress of traveling. I fell asleep relaxed and awoke refreshed each day of that trip. They were just a few simple, small things to pack that made a big difference in allowing me to release the emotional clutter of traveling. Try it on your next trip---bring along the little things that can help you relax after a stressful day on the road. Onward!
 

--Dot Snow