In my mind, girls trips with your besties are equally as important as family vaca’s and one on one trips with your partner. Each in their own way, hold important places in your life and serve a purpose.
There is no better way to forge a solid friendship than with an interesting Uber ride that leaves you laughing for days. If you’ve had one, then you know what I’m talking about!
Surrounding yourself with friends who are positive and happy can elevate oxytocin. You know, that happy chemical we need. And it all starts to manifest in the planning. (One of my favorite parts!)
It’s scientifically proven that planning a trip and the expectation of it, leaves you with a feeling of joy and excitement. But imagine sharing that joy with your best girlfriends. When one of you has had a bad day, what’s the subject that will immediately get her excited?
“We have that trip coming up!!!”
Then, next thing you know, everyone is talking about it and viola…instant good mood feels. For everyone!
Once you’re on this trip there are a myriad of reasons why it’s some of your best times you’ll have. You don’t feel lonely. You’re sharing memories and experiences. You’ll feel safer. Traveling in a “pack”, especially for a woman, can help ease some of the fears. It’s cheaper. That’s a big one. You tend to split costs on rooms, rides, gas.
All those things are great, but not necessarily my reasoning behind why girls trips are a necessity.
My mom told me to never lose myself. She told me this over and over when I was younger. She said…
You’re more than just a mom, you’re more than just a spouse, you’re more than just a cook, more than just a chauffeur and you’re more than just an employee. You’re Nikki. And if you’re not careful, you’ll turn around one day and not know who Nikki is outside of the mom, wife, cook, chauffeur and employee. She’ll slowly disappear in the everyday hustle and bustle if you don’t work to hold on to her.
So I went on a search of what works best for me. Finding some of the things I need to do just for me so I don’t lose sight of who I am. The problem is, I didn’t require a lot of material things. What I needed was new experiences, in new places with a tribe of ladies who don’t require anything from you except for you to be yourself.
There’s something to be said for the sense of security and comfort that comes along with the pure honesty you can get from really good friends. Some of my deepest and most genuine talks have come in between laughs while sitting in a condo eating snacks or floating around aimlessly in a pool. Letting your guard down to have real conversations. You really get to know each other in those in between moments. Understand who they are and why. They could be your best friend and you’ll still manage to learn new things about each other.
There’s also freedom that comes along with a friends trip. You’re only responsible for yourself and having a good time. As rewarding as being a mother is, it’s taxing as well. Having the freedom to let loose of your cares and day to day responsibilities is needed every once in a while. And teaches your children lessons in the value of friendship and mental health strategies.
Let me leave you with this…
It’s doesn’t matter how big or small. A weekend trip to the mountains or a week in Cabo. Just set aside the time, schedule care for the kids or pets or plants or whatever lol, pack your bags and go. Experience it for yourselves.
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