Just when the most anticipated break of the year arrives, when the work schedule is interrupted and obligations seem to be left behind, thousands of people are faced with a paradox that is difficult to understand: they fall ill. Colds, low-grade fever, cold sores, body aches and a feeling of extreme fatigue appear precisely at the start of the vacation, when the body should begin to recover. Although it is often attributed to “bad luck”, this phenomenon has a scientific explanation linked to prolonged work stress and the so-called Burnout syndrome.
Far from being a coincidence, psychiatrist Laura Villamil explains that this discomfort is the direct consequence of months of physical and mental effort. According to the expert, when a person remains under high levels of stress for long periods of time, the body enters a sort of survival mode.
In this state, the body works “in spurts”, supported by hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline, responsible for keeping the worker active, alert and productive.
These hormones play a key role in emergency situations, but their constant presence comes at a high cost to the body. Villamil emphasizes that cortisol and adrenaline block vital functions: they reduce the defenses of the immune system, erase natural signs of fatigue and slow down normal cellular repair processes. In other words, the body continues to function, but at the expense of its ability to recover.
The critical point comes when rest finally appears. With the start of the holidays, the brain interprets that the threat has disappeared and suddenly reduces the production of stress hormones which had been supporting the body for months. This is when the body reveals its true state. The discomfort that occurs at this time is neither abnormal nor dangerous; rather, it is an expected physiological response after a prolonged period of overload.
The top three answers
Villamil identifies three main reactions that are activated when the body can finally rest. The first is the awakening of the immune system. When the inhibitory effect of cortisol disappears, the defenses react strongly. This is why, explains the psychiatrist, it is so common that at the start of the holidays colds, low fever, muscle pain or outbreaks of cold sores appear. It’s not that people get sick “because they’re on vacation”, but that the body no longer supports itself artificially.
The specialist emphasizes this point: the body does not become ill because the worker has stopped working, but because it has been operating for months in a constant state of alert which allows the symptoms to be controlled. When this pressure disappears, the body takes the opportunity to manifest what it contained.
The second reaction is the appearance of real fatigue. With the decrease in adrenaline, the body stops hiding accumulated exhaustion. During the first few days of rest, many people feel intense fatigue, lack of energy and a constant need to sleep. Villamil clarifies that this state has nothing to do with laziness or lack of motivation. This is simply an organization trying to salvage what it was unable to process during the months of high demand.
The third reaction corresponds to the body entering repair mode. By activating the parasympathetic nervous system, responsible for rest and digestion, the body begins recovery processes: repairs tissues, reduces accumulated inflammation and regulates functions such as sleep and digestion. This process can generate strange sensations or discomfort that previously went unnoticed, leading some people to worry unnecessarily.
This phenomenon highlights the level of exhaustion to which thousands of workers in the country are subjected. The so-called Burnout syndrome is not just a popular expression, but a medical reality that shows how chronic stress keeps the body in a state of alert that cannot be maintained indefinitely. Vacation, in this context, is not the problem, but the time when the body finds the space to manifest the consequences of this prolonged pressure.
Laura Villamil’s recommendation is clear: these symptoms are normal and part of the healing process. Understanding that initial holiday discomfort is a sign that the body is healing can help reduce anxiety and avoid unnecessary alarm.
For the specialist, the real challenge is not to manage the symptoms that appear at rest, but to rethink the working conditions that lead the body to such high levels of wear and tear. Understanding this phenomenon, he concludes, is a first step towards recognizing the importance of real and sustained rest, in addition to the few days of end-of-year vacation.
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