Why Travel Expands Your Mental Capacity

Most of us are familiar with the health benefits associated with traveling. As someone who’s been an avid traveler since a very young age, I’m living proof of many of these benefits. Travel helps lower stress levels, improves our mental health, forces us to exercise, and even enhances our sleeping patterns.

Now, science is talking about the many ways in which travel helps our brain health.

It Boosts Creativity

Meeting new people, having to adapt to new situations, and just being exposed to new cultures are instant ways to expand your mind. Various studies have shown a connection between traveling and increased creativity. Not to mention, those who travel frequently are more open and emotionally stable, according to the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Other studies, looking at international students, found that they were 20% more likely to solve a specific computer task, compared to those who didn’t travel. When your mind needs to keep up in a new environment, continually pushing itself to understand a new language, it impacts your mental capacity. Therefore, those who travel have a longer life expectancy.

It Improves Your Self-Image

When you’re traveling, you adapt to whatever is out there. Traveling is an excellent way to get out of your comfort zone to build resilience. When you travel, you tackle different challenges that are often out of your control. That makes you become emotionally and mentally resilient. It also makes you more flexible, patient, and stronger.

How to Reap Traveling Benefits after Traveling

Reduced stress levels, improved sleeping patterns, a lower risk of heart disease, those benefits seem too good to leave only for vacation-time. While you cannot be in a constant state of vacation, and most of us can’t travel the world for a living, we can still reap the benefits of traveling, well after your return home.

Consider keeping some aspects of your travel abroad that make you happy. For example, if you enjoyed the food, learn how to cook the food to re-create some of the same feelings you had on vacation. Be mindful and remember the most calming and fulfilling moments of your vacation whenever you feel stressed.

Think about things you did differently. For example, if you walked more during your vacation, try to incorporate walking sessions into your daily routine. Bringing these elements from your time out of the home can help keep those same feelings with you for longer.