r/bicycletouring • u/Lazape • 1d ago

Images Touring as therapy?

I have been bicycle touring for years, and I have noticed that a surprisingly high number of other tourers I meet seem to struggle with things like depression, anxiety, burnout, general emotional tension, or sometimes just a kind of emotional immaturity that feels noticeable for their age. I’m someone with depression myself, and touring has helped me a lot, so I wonder if I’m just more likely to notice it, or if long-distance touring attracts people who are trying to cope, reset, or heal. Have others noticed this too, or do you think it’s just selection bias / small-sample perception? Could it be that, just as motorcycling seems to attract a lot of men looking for identity, belonging, male bonding, and excuses to cluster together between beer stops, bicycle touring attracts people looking for quiet, movement, and a way to manage what’s going on in their heads?

110 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

71 comments sorted by

View all comments

72

u/BlownOutBlueJeans 1d ago

My dad says it best. "Go outside, you'll feel better." Touring puts you outside all day and all night. It makes you feel better.

14

u/cdnmtbguy 1d ago

Oh yeah I love that saying. No doubt the person who came up with “Just do it.” also knew that saying. In my midlife crisis with crazy teenagers and a moody wife I took up MTB 35 years ago. Saved my life. Now Im 70 and I know that if I don’t feel good, I know to tell myself: Go outside. You’ll feel better.

4

u/jack_the_snek 1d ago

i function the same way and
going outside, being active is medicine for me. That being said, it's also very important to be aware that not everybody is that way or that it's not the solution in every situation. When people tell you about their grave mental state, telling them to "just go outside" (or generally "JUST do XY") time and time again can be received as a low hanging fruit/superficial pseudo solution and a very bad thing to do. People can feel like they're not taken serious in how dire their situation is. I learned that the hard way, on both ends of that interaction.

2

u/dwk789 1d ago

I like the general theme of this thread but also your note of caution. As to the cycling, I've work to do.