I had tough time in Sofia, Bulgaria. I got scammed on arrival and that triggered anxiety which I thought was behind me. But it actually turned out to be a good thing because it forced me to give myself the time and space to deal with some things on a deeper level.
The challenges of solo travel are character building and teach you resilience so it’s important to learn how to deal with anxiety while travelling and how to not let a bad experience ruin your trip. Watch the above video see what unfolded and how I dealt with it.
So I’ll start with filling you in on the bad experience first. I’d jumped off the bus in the heart of Sofia and stupidly hadn’t read up on the city’s infamous taxi scammers so I jumped in one. In a nutshell, I was charged a crazy price and driven in the opposite direction of where I needed to go so I got out before being chased down by the driver.
Avoid the Bulgaria taxi scam: I’ve since learnt it’s better to book taxis than to grab them off the street. This particular taxi scam ring (NOT pictured) was operating at the Sofia bus station and I’ve read they also operate at the airport charging very inflated prices for short trips that would be a fraction of the price by the metre.
Tips for dealing with anxiety when travelling solo
1. Push past the fear and get out
I wanted to stay in my room and hide because I felt scared to go out on the streets alone. I was afraid the guy would be waiting for me on the street or get his mates to chase me down. But I had to remind myself that was unlikely and forced myself to get out and about. Yes I did put a scarf over my head in disguise to ease the fear but I still went out which was an accomplishment! Once you push past the first hurdle, you feel like you have superpowers and you realise it’s not as bad as it was in your mind.
2. Make friends in the hostel
When I got back to the hostel, I made friends with a woman in my room and we just clicked, she was such a breathe of fresh air and had the best outlook on life. If it hadn’t been for Maria I would have left Sofia the following morning but I ended up staying about five days just spending some downtime looking inwards, chatting with Maria and building a new website layout. After being so busy it felt good to stop for a few days and I felt like meeting Maria was a sign not to worry. We went and got coffee in the mornings together and she gave me some tourist tips of where to go. Making friends gives you a sense of camaraderie and it really is true that talking about a problem makes it much less of an issue than holding it in.
3. Get a local SIM card
I usually only buy a local SIM card if I’m staying in the country for a week or more so I hadn’t bought one for Bulgaria as I was only planning to stay a few days. But I was feeling anxious being out and about alone and getting a local SIM card made me feel more secure and connected to the rest of the world. Find out the local emergency number if it will make you feel safer but for me it was just being able to go on Messenger and not feel so isolated in my mind that made a world of difference.
4. Focus on the positives
For every bad experience or bad person you encounter, there are plenty more good ones to focus on. So a little technique I have found to be really powerful is instead of stewing over the bad thing, focus your energy on thinking about three positive people or things you’ve encountered. The bad feeling will dissipate pretty quickly.
5. Eat good food
Did someone say comfort food? There is no better excuse to try all of the local food, treat yourself to a more expensive restaurant or eat all the ice cream flavours! Food can be a tasty bandaid to help you feel better initially but it also is vital for helping you deal with these mishaps. Eating a balanced diet gives you good emotional energy as well as physical, so after a lot of bread and cheap food, I treated myself to some decent Western style salads and legumes, delicious gelato and went out to a nice pizza restaurant with my hostel roommates which I wouldn’t have normally splashed out on. You need to have allowances in your budget, no matter how strict, to allow for comfort food when you really need it.
6. Allow yourself to rest
I usually take a lot of photos for Instagram and/or shoot vlog content for YouTube but in Sofia I only took one Instagram photo and didn’t go hard on solid vlog content apart from these snippets I’ve compiled for you in this anxiety video. Whether you’re content creating or having a jam-packed sight-seeing holiday, travelling can be tiring and being tired makes you more susceptible to anxiety. So you need to listen to your body. If you’re feeling anxious it’s probably a sign that you need to slow down, be still, meditate, connect with others, wander aimlessly and rest.
