By Stacy Hixon, MA, LPC-S, CCTP, FRTP
Summer is one of the most common times people take vacations, especially in July. Most of us plan for one big vacation every year, or at least take a week off work and stay home to rest. Vacations are one of the most important things we can give ourselves.
Research suggests that vacations can:
• Reduce stress and burnout
• Improve mood and emotional well being
• Help with creativity and problem solving
• Improve sleep quality
• Lower the risk of stress related health issues
• Strengthen relationships through shared experiences
• Improve focus and productivity when we return to work
• Give us time for rest, reflection, and personal growth
My husband and I are very fortunate that we take about three weeks off per year, not consecutively, but spread throughout the year. We do not travel often because I have intense effort tax struggles. The thought of packing, planning, traveling, staying somewhere else, coming home, unpacking, and then trying to rest enough to feel rested before going back to work can shut me down before I even start. So, we usually take day trips, weekend getaways, or stay home.
A vacation is not really about travel. It is about taking time away from work and the stress of life to recharge. If traveling recharges you, that is fantastic and you should absolutely travel. For me, I love staying home, spending quality time with my husband, our daughter, son in law, the puppies, and our treasured friends. Regardless of what you do or how often you do it, it is imperative for our mental health that we take time to recharge as often as we can.
The older I get, the less energy I have, so recognizing how important recharging is has been very eye opening for me. Too often, we are told we are lazy if we are not being productive. That is nonsense!
Everything that runs on energy needs time to recharge, and that includes us. I often ask clients if they would get upset with their phone for being at 0 to 10% battery because they forgot to plug it in. No, we might be frustrated with ourselves, but we understand it is not the phone’s fault. Yet we get so frustrated with ourselves when our own energy reserves are low and we need rest. We push ourselves past exhaustion, and then we wonder why we get sick, struggle to focus, feel irritable with our loved ones, and feel stressed all the time.
If I can impart any wisdom today, let it be this:
- Rest and recharge.
- Do it as often as you need it.
- Learn to say, “No.”
- Learn to say, “That won’t work with my schedule.”
- Learn to say, “I can’t.”
- If you do not take care of yourself, no one else will.
© 2026 LifeWise Counseling and Wellness, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
