How good were you while you were on vacation! You were not bothered by work responsibilities, problems with colleagues, dates or deadlines. You experienced a period where relaxation, a feeling of well-being and joy prevailed over worries and obligations. And now comes the return to (hard) reality!
Holiday depression or holiday blues is not an invention, but at the same time it is not a real clinical depression. It is a state where a person is afraid of returning to work, does not look forward to it at all, and if he really did not have to, he would not go to it for at least a few more days or weeks.
"Most employees, students, but also business owners are familiar with this situation. There is no reason to turn a blind eye to it. It really exists, and that's why we need to look for functional solutions to it," said Lívia Bachratá, Director of Public Affairs at Edenred.
Take your time
The good news is that holiday depression is a temporary condition and will go away after a few days, a few weeks at the most. However, as long as a person feels its symptoms, such as fear of the work environment, reluctance to go to work or perform certain activities, significant reluctance to meet, communicate or cooperate with a colleague - there is no need to put too much pressure on yourself. On the contrary, it is necessary to return step by step to the normal work regime and work routine.
"First of all, a sufficiently long vacation, lasting at least two weeks, helps. Many employees and employers cannot afford that. In that case, the solution is to take a shorter vacation with one to two days at home before going back to work." recommended by L. Bachratá.
Psychologists and psychiatrists also recommend a slower transition. To change the rhythm of life, although to a known state, you need to give yourself more time. The worst thing is to return from vacation at night and the next morning already "cut" at work.
Step by Step
The pile of tasks, emails and problems that have accumulated at work during your absence do not need to be solved right away. Certainly not everything and not on the first day.
On the contrary, experts recommend starting work slowly. Solve less important and therefore less serious things first, and keep challenges or really hard nuts for two or three days later.
It is extremely helpful to return to a good sleep pattern. During the vacation, we may not have slept as much as we need, the sleep was not regular or it is disturbed due to the time difference. You need to take your time and start going to bed and waking up at the same time regularly.
"Staying overnight due to work duties that have accumulated during the employee's absence is not a good solution, as it increases the feeling of frustration, brings more fatigue, and this also entails less performance and more error rate. I recommend allowing yourself a long enough sleep to regenerate your physical and mental strength," continues our director for Public Affairs.
Do what you love
It is certainly not harmful to plan (at least after returning from vacation) something for every day that makes a person satisfied and helps his mental and physical health. Whether it's a massage, exercise, meeting friends, meditation, yoga class, playing a musical instrument, watching a movie, cycling or archery, it doesn't matter.
"It's ideal to have activities that bring us pleasure and relaxation scheduled as a regular thing throughout the working year, not just after the holidays. It helps maintain a better work-life balance,” L. Bachratá is convinced.
Various forms of benefits from the employer can also be used for this. If you don't have them, it's never too late to propose solutions at work that will benefit both parties.
"It has been repeatedly confirmed to us that the appropriate setting of financial and non-financial employee benefits increases the performance of employees, reduces the number of sick days and the turnover rate, it also saves the employer costs for rewards, but also for the search and induction of new employees." concludes L. Bachratá.
