Why Emotional Crashes Happen After a ‘Good’ Holiday or Trip

Sometimes the hardest part is not the trip itself.

It’s the crash afterwards.

We had just come back from six days in France. And honestly? In many ways, it had gone far better than I expected.

There had been laughter.
Moments of calm.
Moments where I thought,
“Maybe this has done her good.”

But what people often don’t see is how much energy it can take for someone with emotional dysregulation, trauma, anxiety, or Functional Neurological Disorder (FND) to hold it together for days at a time.

Even good things can overload the nervous system.

New places.
Travel.
Different routines.
Being “on.”
Trying to cope.
Trying not to disappoint people.
Trying to appear okay.

Sometimes they keep going until the body simply cannot anymore.

And that’s exactly what happened here.

The Bit People Don’t See After the Holiday

When we got home, there wasn’t really any proper decompression time.

Life immediately crept back in.

Stress.
Pressure.
Overthinking.
Emotional exhaustion.

And looking back now, I honestly think her nervous system never fully came back down from high alert.

By Tuesday, everything spiralled.

Not dramatically at first.

Just that feeling parents often recognise instantly:
something is wrong.

The overwhelm became unbearable very quickly.

The emotional pain became intense.

The hopelessness came flooding back.

She was sobbing, distressed, exhausted, and talking from that place where someone no longer wants to feel trapped inside everything they’re carrying.

And as a parent, those moments are terrifying.

When the Nervous System Finally Crashes

I think many parents expect the crisis to happen during the stressful event itself.

But often, young adults hold everything together until afterwards.

Until they are finally home.
Finally “safe.”
Finally no longer running on adrenaline.

Then the nervous system crashes.

And with FND especially, stress and emotional overload do not just stay emotional.

The body gets involved too.

Symptoms can flare.
Exhaustion deepens.
The brain struggles to process clearly.
Everything feels bigger, heavier, harder.

It is not attention-seeking.
It is not laziness.
It is not manipulation.

It is overwhelm.

Real overwhelm.

“I Don’t Know… I Can’t Remember”

I remember trying gently to ground things a little.

I asked:
“What does the Mental Health Team say happens when everything builds up like this?”

And through tears she sobbed:
“I don’t know… I can’t remember…”

That moment really stayed with me.

Because it reminded me that when someone is deeply dysregulated, logic disappears first.

People often try to reason, explain, problem-solve, or ask lots of questions in these moments.

But the brain physically struggles to process information when the nervous system is overloaded.

No deep conversation was going to help right then.

No analysing.
No pushing.
No “you need to think positively.”

Her brain and body were exhausted.

What She Actually Needed

What she needed was regulation.

Calm.
Quiet.
Safety.
Rest.

And honestly, I had to become the regulated one in the room.

Even while I felt frightened myself.

I had to slow my voice down.
Keep things simple.
Listen more than talk.
Help her feel safe enough for her nervous system to stop fighting.

No pressure.
No overwhelming conversations.
No trying to instantly fix everything.

Just:
“You need rest.”
“Your body is exhausted.”
“You’ve been holding so much.”

And eventually, sleep.

Real sleep.

Not doom scrolling.
Not spiralling.
Not staying stuck in panic for hours.

Rest.

Because sometimes the most powerful thing we can do is help the nervous system recover before trying to solve the bigger picture.

Signs Your Young Adult May Be Emotionally Overloaded

Sometimes emotional overload can look like:

• sudden hopelessness after a “good” event

• emotional outbursts or panic

• shutting down completely

• worsening FND symptoms

• exhaustion but inability to relax

• wanting to escape everything

• struggling to process information

• crying uncontrollably

• saying “I don’t know” to everything

• needing constant reassurance

• feeling emotionally unsafe in their own body

And for parents, it can feel incredibly frightening to witness.

Why Rest Matters More Than We Realise

I think we massively underestimate what chronic stress does to the nervous system.

Especially in young adults who are already living in survival mode most of the time.

Sometimes they are not “going backwards.”

Sometimes their system has simply run out of road.

And when that happens, pushing harder rarely works.

Rest matters.
Regulation matters.
Feeling emotionally safe matters.

Not forever.
Not as avoidance.

But as recovery.

Sometimes the Crash Comes Afterwards

That week reminded me of something important:

Just because a trip looked successful on the outside does not mean there wasn’t a huge internal cost underneath it.

And sometimes our young adults save the collapse for when they finally get home.

So if your child has spiralled after:

• a holiday

• exams

• hospital appointments

• family events

• social situations

• a “good” week

• or even after appearing completely fine…

You are not imagining it.

The nervous system crash after stress is very real.

Sometimes our role is not to fix the storm immediately.

Sometimes it is simply to become the steady anchor while it passes.

Even when we are exhausted, too.

Your calm in the chaos,

Sami ⚓💙