Madame Mom, as the summer season comes to an end, let’s do a quick survey: how many staycations did you have over the last few months. Too many?
While the economy, work and family demands have probably kept you from getting away, an old-fashioned trip is the only true way to recharge. Working on your laptop in a corner while the rest of your family and friends are enjoying a BBQ is not going to cut it. Women who take a holiday once a year or more are almost as twice as likely to be satisfied with their marriage as those who escaped less often, say researchers at the Marshfield Clinic Research Foundation, Wisconsin. You need to plan a budget-friendly, stress-free vacation (yes, you can get away before the winter holidays). Start planning now!
Flip through for four reasons to get up and go…
You’ll be a calmer worker
About one in three employed adults will not use up all of her vacation days, an Expedia.com survey says. Also, use your vacation days for actual enjoyment, not errands; you’ll feel less overwhelmed when you return to your desk. Take your time because you’ve earned it! Leave the laptop behind.
You’ll be healthier
Getting away has been proven to help reduce the levels of cortisol, a stress hormone linked to belly fat. Get active on your trip, engage in leisure activities and whittle away your waist while you’re at it!
You’ll have sweet dreams
It’s the pleasure principle: people who regularly engage in pleasurable activities, like taking a trip, get a high quality of sleep, according to a study reported in Psychosomatic Medicine. They say that you’ll get an hour or more of quality sleep on your escape.
You’ll live longer
A study from the Framingham Heart Study showed that women who take at least take 2 vacations per year were 8 times less likely to develop coronary heart disease than women who took only one every six years.
