We live in stressful times. Worries about job security, retirement funds shrinking and how to pay the mortgage affect us all. The media doesn’t help with all its doom and gloom forecasts.

As humans, we are programmed to avoid anything that feels bad or uncomfortable. If it hurts, the first thing we try to do is get away from the pain, and stress certainly is painful. Were also taught that the quick fix is the best fix. Got a headache? Take a pill. Cant sleep? Take another pill. Stressed out? Have a cocktail, or take a vacation!

Vacations have long been a solution for stress. There is this misconception that a vacation will help us deal with the problems at home. While it’s true that while on vacation we relax a little more, does a typical gay vacation really make a difference?

We spend the first few days of the vacation just unwinding and getting used to being on vacation. The last few days of the vacation, we start stressing about going home and all that awaits us there. In between, we get to escape a little.

When the vacation ends, we have go back to all the things that sent on a vacation in the first place. Nothing has changed at home and we probably didn’t gain any tools on the vacation to help handle life’s daily stresses. This is why Spirit Journeys is more important now than ever before.

Our personal experience has shown us that gay travel with Spirit Journeys can be a life changing event. The introduction to new ways of thinking, the learning and practicing of techniques to handle stress or the building of a support network of friends, can all help us be less affected by lifes ups and downs; to be more confident as we move through our lives.

The deep connections made to other people at Spirit Journeys’ event simply don’t happen on ordinary gay travel. Honest and heartfelt conversations take place; people really listen to what we say and we return the favor. This kind of connection does take effort. We need be willing be honest and we need to participate. We can’t just go hide somewhere.

But the effort we put out has unimaginable rewards. We know in our hearts that this kind of effort has the power to change us, and change us deeply. These kind of changes to our “way of being” in the world, can make everday feel like we’re on a vacation.

An article by Howie Holben about spiritual gay travel. You cand learn more about gay vacations with meaning at www.SpiritJourneys.com.