Healthy Habits

Staying Present on Vacation

During our New Year’s Eve trip to Palmetto Bluff I came down with a case of social media comparison syndrome. With the way the holidays fell this year,  everyone seemed to be spending the week between Christmas and New Year’s on the beach. Instead of booking a beach trip, Ryan and I booked a trip to the slow, low country where we could unplug from everything and not feel pressured to get up early, get dressed up, go on crazy excursions, or really do anything at all. We just wanted a super quite place to relax and unplug.

When we landed in Savannah, I took one look at Instagram and the comparison syndrome hit, I started to wish that we were headed to the beach like everyone I was seeing on Instagram.  Little did I know that I was about to arrive to one of the most beautiful places on earth – a place that now I would take over the beach any day! I’m embarrassed that I let the social media comparison game start before I even gave this amazing trip a chance. Thankfully the Montage Palmetto Bluff was so breathtaking I quickly forgot about everything I was seeing on social media. However that doesn’t always happen. Social media comparison syndrome can really ruin the most wonderful moments in life if you’re not aware of how it’s impacting your mood and attitude. Here are a few things I did while on our trip that helped me to stay present.

  • I reminded myself of my intention for the trip which was to reset, relax and spend quality, stress free time with Ryan.
  • I acted on that intention by treating myself to something each day. I let myself sleep in, I took naps and baths, I went for long runs, I cuddled up with Ryan and talked about silly stuff, I had champagne with lunch, and I spent $12 on breakfast smoothies (that I could make better myself BTW)
  • I tried to stay present in every moment and soak in the beauty, quite and slow nature of Palmetto Bluff that is so rare in the world we live in.
  • Instead of spending my entire morning mindlessly scrolling through social media, I set aside 5 minutes to mindfully reflect on my favorite memory from the day before. 
  • Instead of over consuming everyone else’s memories, I created my own. Ryan got me a really cool mini video camera so I took some fun video of us riding bikes around the resort. We also took photos and explored, we got lost in the woods searching for a huge treehouse and explored the city of Savannah.

For those of you who struggle with social media comparison syndrome the same way I do try out some of the tips I shared above. They may sound silly and small but they truly work wonders. The day we left to head back to chilly Chicago, Palmetto Bluff was 75 and sunny. The first glimpse of sun we saw all week. The perfect day to lay by the pool with a daiquiri and get a tan. The kind of day that I was wishing for when we landed. But instead of feelings of frustration, I left feeling more blessed than ever before. The sun was shining, a new day was starting and I was feeling more relaxed and refreshed than ever before.

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One thought on “Staying Present on Vacation

  1. Beautiful photos! My husband’s parents live in Bluffton. It is a very cute little town. Never been to Palmetto Bluff though. When we went away for Christmas i looked at Instagram once. Then I did not go back onto it until we were back home. It felt great. It is so easy to compare ourselves to others and get envious of others. It isn’t worth it though!! No one has a perfect life. I am glad that you were able to disconnect and have a nice trip though!! Stay warm today too! 🙂

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