You push through weeks of deadlines without so much as a sniffle. Then the out-of-office goes on, you land at the beach, and within two days you're in bed with a cold, a migraine or a stomach bug.
It happens so often there's a name for it: the let-down effect, or “leisure sickness”. Here's what's behind it and how to make your next break actually restful.
The short version
Short-term stress temporarily boosts parts of your immune response. When the pressure suddenly drops, that boost fades.
Add accumulated sleep debt, travel, and finally noticing symptoms you were ignoring, and you crash.
Taper the stress in the week before a break instead of sprinting to the finish line.
What's happening in your body
Acute stress, the kind you feel in a deadline sprint, mobilises your immune system for a while. Stress hormones push immune cells into the blood and toward places where they might be needed. Research describes this short-term effect as protective [1].
Long-running stress is different: it tends to wear the immune system down. So you can end a demanding period both depleted and running on a short-term boost. When the pressure stops abruptly, the boost fades, and the fatigue and the bugs you've been carrying catch up.
A Dutch study found that a noticeable group of people consistently report getting ill on weekends and holidays, and that it was linked to high workload and difficulty switching off from work [2].
Why it hits high performers
Sprinting to the holiday: longer hours in the last week to clear the desk.
Sleep debt built up over weeks.
Travel: early flights, crowded airports, a change in routine.
Finally noticing: symptoms you pushed aside now get your full attention.
The tool: the 7-day landing plan
Day -7 to -3: no new projects. Finish or hand over; don't add.
Day -3: leave work on time three days in a row and go to bed 30 minutes earlier.
Day -1: stop by mid-afternoon. Write a handover note and a one-line “first thing when I'm back” note.
Days 1 to 2 of the break: take it slow. Light movement, daylight, regular meals, and no big plans.
Throughout: keep a rough sleep schedule and drink enough water when travelling.
The goal is a gradual descent from high pressure to rest, not a cliff edge.
Three more things that help
Add mini-breaks during busy periods so recovery doesn't all wait for the holiday.
Protect weekends during demanding stretches, at least one fully work-free day.
Move every day, even just a walk; regular activity supports immune health.
Common mistakes
Working right up to the airport. It sets up the crash.
Checking email on holiday “just to stay on top of things”. It keeps the stress system half-on.
Packing the first days with an intense itinerary.
When to see a doctor
See a doctor if you get ill very often, if infections take a long time to clear, or if you have a high fever, trouble breathing, or symptoms that get worse instead of better.
Stress at work? Your company can pay for the fix.
The Fenice 90-day employee program builds a personal, body-first routine around your workday. Most people expense it from their learning or wellbeing budget.
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References
Dhabhar FS. Effects of stress on immune function: the good, the bad, and the beautiful. Immunol Res. 2014;58(2-3):193-210.
Vingerhoets AJJM, Van Huijgevoort M, Van Heck GL. Leisure sickness: a pilot study on its prevalence, phenomenology, and background. Psychother Psychosom. 2002;71(6):311-317.
This guide is general information, not medical advice.
