The Inevitable Overwhelm Before Backpacking | The Big One

THE INEVITABLE OVERWHELM BEFORE BACKPACKING

It is such a privilege to be able to travel long term, and I am beyond grateful for it. But if you, too, are feeling the overwhelm before backpacking, please know that you are not alone!

When I signed myself up to writing about my experiences on the career break that will see me backpacking in my mid-late 30s (aka The Big One), I wanted to be honest about all the highs and the lows. Warts and all.

I have long written travel guides for places I’ve travelled full of recommendations and practical tips, and you’ll still find that here, but I also wanted to share the personal side of what it’s like to pack your life up into a storage unit, rent your place out and live out of a backpack – and specifically what that’s like when you’re not fresh out of uni and you don’t yet have to battle with bad knees and having to get up to pee in the night. (That happens so much earlier than I thought it would?)

It’s a bit ‘just got a dial up AOL connection and discovered LiveJournal in the early 2000s’, but there we are. Welcome.

In all honesty, I thought that once I was this side of Christmas and 8 weeks from getting on my flight to India, I’d be beside myself. Busy, sure, but so excited I could hardly stand it. In reality, I’ve spent half of that time burnt out and the majority of the rest of it overwhelmed.

Work became absolutely relentless to the point of not being able to concentrate on even the easiest of TV after the commute home. I wasn’t sleeping well. I hugely felt the pressure to see everyone before I leave, and obviously wanted to see people, but I can’t book more than two or three social things in a week before the anxiety ramps up at the best of times.

Making sure visas were applied for, getting vaccinations spaced out correctly, ordering last minute supplies, ensuring the flat was all good to be rented out…it was a lot.

In short: it turns out that prepping for such a big life change is quite stressful. Who knew!

When I’ve travelled long term previously, I was in my 20s and still living at home. No need to pack up everything I own into boxes and into storage, for one thing; it just stayed in my bedroom.

Everyone knows that moving is The Worst. Doing all that by yourself? Even trickier. One person has the same amount of kitchen crap as a couple does, after all. I have more crockery than most families actually, but my point is it’s overwhelming for anyone, and even more so if you are doing it by yourself.

There’s no sharing of the responsibility. You can’t split the life admin. Frankly, doing big things by yourself is hard, no matter how independent you are. So if you’re doing this solo too: I see you. You’ve got this! (I’m saying that when I absolutely do not feel like I have this, but we probably do?)

Experiencing overwhelm before backpacking is completely normal, and feeling the anxiety before travelling doesn’t mean you’re not cut out for it. Don’t feel bad for not feeling constantly excited; it will come, even if it’s not until the airport, or even until a few days in. It’s also not going to be the last of it.

Backpacking comes with some of the best highs you’ll experience in your life, but it can be hard at times. For most people there will be loneliness, there will be travel fatigue and homesickness. It’s all part of it, and at least for me, knowing I’m not the only one who’s feeling it is helpful.

Backpacking isn’t just a long holiday; it’s a challenge too. And ultimately, underneath it all, is the knowledge that it is all going to be one hundred percent worth the stress.

So, yes: the overwhelm before backpacking is real. Will you get through it? Yes! Plan as far ahead as possible, make lists and don’t be afraid to ask for help.

And maybe learn from my experience and don’t work right up until the day before you move out of your home…

If you enjoyed my ramblings about the overwhelm before backpacking and are keen to follow along the highs and lows of backpacking in your 30s, you can subscribe here: