Is travel good for your mental health? If you believe my guests in this episode (and me), then it's a resounding yes. I chat first with Kaila Yu who explains some of what she thinks helps your mental health when travelling, including some chat about the miraculous quiet of being under the sea when scuba diving. Next, Heidi Brown describes her mental journey before, during and after a trip, identifying some of the precise reasons that she believes her travels have improved her mental health. Finally, Diane Hartmann describes some of what happened to her on her first trips abroad - all solo - and how these challenges contributed positively to her mental health. A content warning: some of our conversations include references to depression and in the final part of the podcast, suicide, so skip this one if you'd rather not hear these discussions.

Links:
How travel makes me feel more like myself - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/p/how-travel-makes-me-feel-more-like 
Kaila Yu - https://kailayu.com/
Kaila’s memoir Fetishized: A Reckoning with Yellow Fever, Beauty, and Feminism - https://amzn.to/40EL7ID  
Heidi Brown - https://www.heidikristinbrown.com/
Heidi’s memoir The Map I Draw: A Memoir of Travel as a Passport to Self - https://amzn.to/44Mky6T 
Diane Hartman https://dianehartmanauthor.com/
Diane’s new book Getting Lost On My Way: Self Discovery on Ireland’s Backroads - https://amzn.to/45Q9Awp
Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers 
Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers - https://notaballerina.com/linkedin
Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com
Show notes: https://notaballerina.com/366

*Full disclosure: Amazon Services LLC Associates Program
NotABallerina.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Is travel good for your mental health? If you believe my guests in this episode (and me), then it's a resounding yes. I chat first with Kaila Yu who explains some of what she thinks helps your mental health when travelling, including some chat about the miraculous quiet of being under the sea when scuba diving. Next, Heidi Brown describes her mental journey before, during and after a trip, identifying some of the precise reasons that she believes her travels have improved her mental health. Finally, Diane Hartmann describes some of what happened to her on her first trips abroad - all solo - and how these challenges contributed positively to her mental health. A content warning: some of our conversations include references to depression and in the final part of the podcast, suicide, so skip this one if you'd rather not hear these discussions.
Links:
<ul>
<li>How travel makes me feel more like myself - https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com/p/how-travel-makes-me-feel-more-like&nbsp;</li>
<li>Kaila Yu - https://kailayu.com/</li>
<li>Kaila&rsquo;s&nbsp;memoir Fetishized: A Reckoning with Yellow Fever, Beauty, and Feminism - <a href="https://amzn.to/40EL7ID">https://amzn.to/40EL7ID</a> &nbsp;</li>
<li>Heidi Brown - <a href="https://www.heidikristinbrown.com/">https://www.heidikristinbrown.com/</a></li>
<li>Heidi&rsquo;s memoir The Map I Draw: A Memoir of Travel as a Passport to Self - <a href="https://amzn.to/44Mky6T">https://amzn.to/44Mky6T</a>&nbsp;</li>
<li>Diane Hartman <a href="https://dianehartmanauthor.com/">https://dianehartmanauthor.com/</a></li>
<li>Diane&rsquo;s new book Getting Lost On My Way: Self Discovery on Ireland&rsquo;s Backroads - <a href="https://amzn.to/45Q9Awp">https://amzn.to/45Q9Awp</a></li>
<li>Join our Facebook group for Thoughtful Travellers -&nbsp;<a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers">https://www.facebook.com/groups/thoughtfultravellers </a></li>
<li>Join our LinkedIn group for Thoughtful Travellers -&nbsp;<a href="https://notaballerina.com/linkedin">https://notaballerina.com/linkedin</a></li>
<li>Sign up for the Thoughtful Travellers newsletter at Substack -&nbsp;<a href="https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com">https://thoughtfultravel.substack.com</a></li>
<li>Show notes:&nbsp;<a href="https://notaballerina.com/366">https://notaballerina.com/366</a></li>
</ul>
*Full disclosure: Amazon Services LLC Associates Program NotABallerina.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

The Thoughtful Travel Podcast with Amanda Kendle is a show for travel lovers. Each episode is packed with travel stories from fellow travel addicts on topics like using foreign languages, meeting the locals, getting lost and what we learn from our travels.

Tales from travel-lovers about why we travel and what we learn from it.

The Thoughtful Travel Podcast

The Thoughtful Travel Podcast with Amanda Kendle - established 2016 - is a weekly show which helps travellers think about how our travels can be good for us and good for the world. We talk about how to make ethical decisions on our trips, sustainable and regenerative tourism, bringing back what we learn from the people and cultures we meet to improve our lives back home, and share the most memorable stories from travelling: fun, scary, educational and more. Most episodes include extracts from conversations with three different guests, centred on a particular topic, but you'll also hear occasional deep dive interviews, recordings from the Thoughtful Travellers Book Club, and Amanda's own experiences from travelling past and present.

The Thoughtful Travel Podcast with Amanda Kendle - established 2016 - is a weekly show which helps travellers think about how our travels can be good for us and good for the world. We talk about how to make ethical decisions on our trips, sustainable and regenerative tourism, bringing back what we learn from the people and cultures we meet to improve our lives back home, and share the most memorable stories from travelling: fun, scary, educational and more. Most episodes include extracts from conversations with three different guests, centred on a particular topic, but you'll also hear occasional deep dive interviews, recordings from the Thoughtful Travellers Book Club, and Amanda's own experiences from travelling past and present.