Today I am looking out the window at the impossibly blue Pacific Ocean, from my room in the impeccable Halekulani in Honolulu. The only sounds are the rhythmically breaking waves on the beach just below. It has been 5 days since we arrived and I can feel my body decompressing. Sometimes one doesn’t know if they are stressed until the stress diminishes. Since I am the type that likes to track these sort of things, once an engineer always an engineer, I have of course been monitoring my usual stuff. This week, my sleep is 100%, my resting heart rate has dropped considerably, my HRV (heart rate variability is an excellent measure of overall stress) is at its best ever. Ok, so it is a bit silly that I even measure this stuff on vacation, as obviously I am becoming more relaxed with each day and do I really need data to prove it? Let’s put this in the not-that-useful data-as-entertainment category.
Hawaii is the state with the longest average lifespan of any US state. As with any of these population-based longevity observations, such as the blue zones or others, one can only guess as to why this is, but since chronic stress is probably the most health corrosive element one can have, and there seems to be a lot less of that here than on the mainland, that could be one big factor. Hawaiians also live in close proximity to nature — either the ocean or parks that seem be around every corner — and, contrary to what one may believe, eat a lot of plants. It may be the sunshine or it may be genetics or, who knows, maybe something else, but if we just pull out the stress factors, eating a lot of plants, and connection to nature, that would seem like a pretty good recipe for living healthier longer.
Even low levels of stress are not so great. Anything we can do to reduce them, even for a week or two, is worth doing. I am convinced that if I spent a few weeks every year here I would live longer. Maybe that is just me justifying more time in paradise, but I’ll take it. Being here and feeling the warm breeze, seeing the swaying palms, and chatting to the endlessly friendly locals goes a long way. We Americans often seem to feel there is something heroically admirable about not taking vacations. I admit to having been one of the work worshippers early in my life, but then I wised up and understood the value of spending quality time with family and friends, doing more or less nothing productive. We all need breaks, and if your work allows it, most actually encourage it, take your vacations. You will never regret them. The world will get on just fine without you for the time you are gone.
Onward and upward,
David
