Do you suffer from ‘Vagabond Neurosis’?

There’s an eye-opening write up over on the National Post about traveler Charles Veley, who is on a quest to visit every country, state and territory on the planet. Let’s be clear from the start, Veley is not a vagabond, he’s a dot-com millionaire with the free time pursue such a goal. It’s worth questioning the motivations of those obsessed with checking things off a list, but the scope of his travels are still somewhat enviable.

However, the far more interesting part of the article is that the National Post points out that there is actually a named “neurosis” to describe the perpetual desire (dare I say need) to travel.

Yes, it’s true my fellow vagabonds, we have our very own, DSM-certified psychological problem.

The DSM (that would be the mammoth tome, The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) describes “vagabond neurosis” as, “an impulse control disorders… sufferers have an abnormal impulse to travel; they are prepared to spend beyond their means, sacrifice jobs, lovers and security in their lust for new experiences.”

And you thought it was just a desire to see the world and learn more about your fellow men and women.

No my vagabonding friends, we are sick. Very sick.

Unfortunately I don’t have access to a copy of the DSM, so I’m not sure what the cure is. However, I do know of a folk remedy: get in your car, drive to airport and buy a ticket to the first destination you see that you’ve never heard of. It’s always worked for me.

If you’d like to know more about Veley’s adventures and his quest to visit all 757 countries, territories, autonomous regions, enclaves, geographically separated island groups, and major states and provinces, check out the Most Traveled People website which has more info about Veley and his competitors.

Even if, like me, you think counting countries is silly (worse than silly actually, but we’ll leave that alone for now), Veley’s travels are interesting and he’s been the quite a few places you’ve probably never heard of, so if you’re looking for an out of the way place to go, check out his favorites.

[found via World Hum]

Posted by | Comments (1)  | October 14, 2008
Category: General


One Response to “Do you suffer from ‘Vagabond Neurosis’?”

  1. DSM-IV To The Rescue! | bananor Says:

    […] Rolf Potts, you have a recent post entitled Do You Suffer From ‘Vagabond Neurosis’?I read your post, and being the nerdy recipient of a BA with distinction in Psychology, I consulted […]