Welcome!

My name is Rachel Davis. I’m 37, with no children, living in the Chicago suburbs with my husband Brett, my mother Stephanie, and a fat and sassy 13 and a half year old Pomeranian named Calzone.

I have bipolar 1 disorder and generalized anxiety disorder. These were diagnosed for me at ages 19 and 22, respectively. They offer unique and sometimes unfun challenges to daily life, like for many people out there. I take a regime of medication daily, see a psychiatrist monthly, and a therapist weekly. I also do ketamine infusions for ptsd and depression.

I also love to travel. I’ve been to 37 states and 23 countries. In December/January 2024-2025 I’ll be adding three more countries to that list. Those will be incredibly interesting, because it will be my first time in Asia, and in incredibly populated cities that are very unlike what I’ve been to before.

We returned home yesterday from Nova Scotia. It was an amazing trip, and while I was there I purchased a travel journal. I am constantly taking photos on my travels because I studied photography in high school and took a few classes in college. But I was never great about keeping written records of my trips. I have scraps of notes here and there, ticket stubs and receipts. But I wanted a place to put it all down as a record for me. I also thought others might be interested in it for travel purposes, and because I can offer my perspective on what it is like to travel as a person with a mental disorder.

So many people suffer from a condition that requires medication or therapy or any other type of technique that allows grounding and finding peace. Sometimes we aren’t our best selves when we travel. Sometimes we desperately miss home and are stuck 8000 miles away. Sometimes we embarass ourselves or overschedule or, like me, have a manic episode in New Orleans and buy $200 worth of macarons and drink bloody Mary’s til dawn.

I wanted to write about what that has been like for me. The good, the bad, the beautiful, the ugly, and the unique. Travel opens us up to new people, things, ideas. It also is a lot of work, mentally, physically and financially, and sometimes we just need the comfort of home. Sometimes we need to take our pills to make it on to the plane to the next destination, or use grounding techniques and 4-6 breathing so we don’t cry in a museum in Sevilla.

I hope to impart some of the practical and philosophical wisdom I’ve gained from my travels here. I’ll also provide recommendations for places I’ve been. Please remember that each thought is my own, maybe you’ll love a destination I didn’t, or hate a restaurant I loved. Gather as much information as you can on a destination, and go be brave and explore.