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The out-of-office message is on and the laptop is shut. The long-awaited vacation has finally begun.
Then comes the sore throat, the stuffy nose and the pounding headache.
The cruel irony? After weeks of pushing through deadlines and nonstop responsibilities, some high achievers find that the moment they finally slow down is when they start feeling sick.
That’s according to a viral TikTok from somatic instructor Liz Tenuto, who claims that “high-achieving women getting a cold on day 2 of every single vacation.”
According to Tenuto, years of running on chronic stress keep cortisol levels elevated, allowing women to push through exhaustion — until they finally relax, when their bodies seemingly “crash.”
The video struck a nerve.
“Literally happened to me every vacation since I was a child,” one user wrote.
“As a teacher, this happens EVERY extended break we have,” another commented. “I get so sick on the first/second day that I spend the whole week just recovering.”
“It is me. I am this woman. Happens on almost every single vacation!” another wrote.
Tenuto attributed the pattern to what’s often called the let-down effect — the idea that some people become ill shortly after a stressful period ends.
While the TikTok isn’t medical gospel, experts say it is pointing toward a real and biologically plausible phenomenon.
“The body does not always switch from high-output survival mode into rest mode smoothly,” Dr. Henry Legere, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Restore Hyper Wellness told The Post.
“For some people — especially high-responsibility, high-performing individuals — the first few days of vacation are when the bill for chronic stress finally comes due.”
That doesn’t necessarily mean relaxation itself causes illness.
Rather, Legere said prolonged stress can keep the body in a heightened fight-or-flight state, fueled by hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. During that time, sleep often suffers, the immune system shifts and many people simply unknowingly push through aches, fatigue and similar early stages of illness.
“When stress abruptly drops, people may notice symptoms more, inflammatory pathways may rebound, migraines can be triggered, and latent viral or respiratory symptoms may become apparent,” he explained.
Scientists sometimes refer to this as leisure sickness, but Legere cautioned that neither leisure sickness nor the let-down effect is an official medical diagnosis. While intriguing, the research is also limited.
One small Dutch study published in 2002 found that roughly 3% of participants reported regularly becoming sick during weekends or vacations, with headaches, fatigue, muscles aches, nausea and cold-like symptoms among the most common complaints. Researchers observed that symptoms often appeared during the first few days off and suggested the transition from chronic work activation to relaxation could play a role.
Still, the study relied largely on self-reported experiences, with the authors themselves calling for more research.
So is getting sick the minute vacation begins all in your head? Not necessarily.
“It’s directionally credible, but likely overstated,” said Legere of the viral TikTok.
There also isn’t strong evidence that the phenomenon affects achieving women in particular. While that group may identify with the trend, Legere says anyone living under prolonged stress could potentially experience a similar rebound.
If there’s a silver lining, it’s that vacation doesn’t have to end with tissues and throat lozenges. Legere recommends easing into time off instead of treating vacation like an on-off switch.
That means gradually wrapping up major work projects instead of sprinting to the finish line, protecting sleep in the days leading up to travel and staying well hydrated before and during the trip.
He also advised limiting heavy drinking, keeping caffeine habits relatively consistent to avoid withdrawal headaches and fitting in light movement — such as walking or stretching — on travel days to help the body adjust.
Perhaps most importantly, resist the urge to pack every minute of vacation with activities. If possible, build in a decompression day.
“Treat vacation as recovery training rather than total collapse,” said Legere.
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