Why Some People Get Sick as Soon as Vacation Starts
Many people know the pattern: the long-awaited vacation finally begins, they start to relax, and then a sore throat, weakness, fatigue or a cold appears. The article says this so-called “vacation sickness” is not a formal medical diagnosis, but it is recognized in medical and behavioral discussions as a common experience tied to sudden stress reduction, routine changes and infections that were already brewing.
Dr. Lee Erez, a family medicine specialist with Maccabi Healthcare Services in the North District, explains that during stressful periods the body stays on alert under hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline, which also affect the immune system. When stress drops abruptly at the start of a holiday, symptoms that were not noticeable before can surface, or a mild illness can become more obvious. Sleep changes, travel, different eating patterns and exposure to enclosed spaces can also strain the body during the transition.
The phenomenon, first described in the early 2000s as “leisure sickness,” has been linked in public health studies to sudden schedule changes, poorer sleep and exposure to new environments such as flights and vacations. Recent observational research also finds that travelers report these symptoms, but the condition is still considered multifactorial rather than a distinct disease.
The article stresses that in many cases the vacation itself is not causing a new illness. Instead, an infection may have started earlier, and once work pressure eases, the body finally allows symptoms to emerge. People who are highly driven, find it hard to relax, or live under heavy work stress appear to be at higher risk. To reduce the chance of symptoms, experts recommend easing gradually into vacation mode, sleeping enough before and during the trip, drinking enough water, avoiding overload in the first days, and allowing time to adjust after flights or climate and altitude changes. Even so, the article says the condition is uncommon, affecting about 3% of the population regularly.
