Post Tour Depression
What is Post Tour Depression?
Over the course of the summer you met tons of new people, worked as hard as you could, and pushed yourself to your limits. After setting into the routine of your corps and finding your sense of purpose within it, it all comes to a crashing halt and you’re pushed back into “everyday life.”
Post Tour Depression or PTD can feel like never-ending jet lag for some, while others can experience a serious case of mood changes, increased anxiety, stomach issues, and even severe withdrawal from the outside world. Believe it or not, PTD is common amongst many touring performers and affects a wide range of activities that involve touring.
PTD can snowball into very dangerous illnesses, both mentally and physically if left ignored. It’s not surprising, given the lifestyle many experience while on tour.
A Completely Different Lifestyle
You just spent hundreds of hours with people who share the same drive, passion, and excitement for your art that you do. Your focus, daily schedule, and sense of purpose all become different. You loved your time with your corps, you know you did an amazing job, but still can’t seem to shake this nagging feeling of emptiness. This feeling is very common in the marching arts as well as other fields that focus on creating and producing something and having that purpose end.
Newfound Bonds
As you go through your season, you begin to make friends with other members and bond over so many different moments throughout the tour. The long hours, stressful situations, performance anxiety, and general passion for the activity bond members together. Once the tour is over, everyone goes their separate ways; sometimes forever or sometimes until next year. At the end of the day, everyone you’ve been on tour with goes back home to their “normal life.” But there’s no reason these bonds and friendships cannot continue.
Here are some ways you can combat Post Tour Depression:
FIND TIME TO REST
This goes without saying, but because tour filters right back into the school year, band camps, and marching band seasons (not to mention other jobs or work you may do) it’s hard to find time to rest, but it’s necessary. Not only for your mind, but for your body too. It’s hard to process so many changing emotions, while your mind is being occupied. Finding time to rest is a necessary part of any healing process.
EXPERIENCE YOUR EMOTIONS
One of the first steps towards dealing with PTD is to sit with the feelings and emotions for a bit. It’s perfectly normal to feel this way. When you ignore your emotions, especially depression, it can manifest in multiple ways throughout your life. Acknowledge your feelings, don’t rush to fill the void immediately and give yourself time to process how you’re feeling.
FIND INSPIRATION
Allow yourself to get excited about other things again. Whether you’re inspired by the activity still, or something else, see where that inspiration can take you. It can help you dive into new projects, find “what’s next” for yourself, or even give you something to look forward to during upcoming summers (if you haven’t aged out yet). Finding something outside of the marching arts that strikes a similar spark of passion or inspiration can help your mind ease back into doing other things again.
STAY IN COMMUNICATION
Staying in communication with your newfound tour friends can be hard, but very rewarding. How often do people in the “outside world” get to meet 100’s of people from all over the country (and world)? Take the off-seasons to learn about the friends you made, get to know their lives outside of tour, and find other things that can bond you. While long distance friendships can be hard too, it’s much easier to cope, connect, and heal with those that have experienced similar things.
CELEBRATE
Don’t let the moments after your final show be the end of you celebrating a job well done. Going on tour, in any capacity, is a huge accomplishment as only a couple thousand people (in a world of over 7 billion) get to experience what you just did. It’s easy to go home and sometimes be bogged down by the possible lack of excitement from people that have not experienced drum corps, but there are plenty of ways to celebrate your accomplishments. FaceTime or Zoom chats with friends reminiscing about your season, treating yourself for a job well done, and watching videos of your show are all ways to help you celebrate your successes.
Remember, post tour depression can become a very serious issue if left untreated. If you find yourself having a sense of loneliness, emptiness, or “deflation” after a few weeks, I urge you to seek professional help or reach out to those close to you for advice on how to properly get help.
You are not alone, and my messages are always open if you ever need anything.
RESOURCES: HELPLINE • NNDC • NIMH
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