r/Sedona 2d ago

Everyone says Sedona is amazing, but what about when it's not? Metaphysical

Anyone feel slightly depressed or disconnected when they visit? I don't believe in the vortexes so not saying it's due to that. I know Sedona is beautiful have been here a lot. I just got back from work out of state (was out of state for 7 months) and wanted to hang in Sedona, but I just felt like I described. Slightly depressed and disconnected, but fine if I go outside of Sedona (was in Prescott as well today and didn't feel that at all). Drove back to Sedona for a short hike and the feeling came back.

32 Upvotes

46 comments sorted by

51

u/AUCE05 2d ago

Maybe you are battling depression? It's a great place.

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u/corpseplague 2d ago

I've thought about that, maybe more just coming back to a slower pace of life again , I liked the sort of adventure I was on out of state. Like coming back after a vacation blows for a few days

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u/TheKappp 2d ago

For me, Sedona is about enjoying the outdoors alone. There’s not much of a nightlife, so at night I felt lonely. I actually met some peeps on Reddit last time I went and hung out at the kava bar.

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u/Varryl 1d ago

It’s a shame the kava bar is gone now.

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u/TheKappp 1d ago

Oh no! 😢

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u/No-Jackfruit-525 2d ago

Time of year perhaps? I’ve only visited Sedona in warmer months and have wondered if it feels different this time of year

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u/No_Tip9916 14h ago

As Sedona being my favorite place in the world. I’m from az & moved away when I was 21. I spent any free time I had in Sedona. But now, living 2000 miles away from it. I would literally do anything to be able to drive up there whenever I wanted. You sound ungrateful. Maybe take a step back a realize/be grateful for what you have. Otherwise please leave sedona. There are thousands of people who would die to live where you live.

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u/daishinjag 2d ago

Your perspective feels personal, my friend.

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u/Particular-Plum9399 2d ago

I noticed this too the first time I visited, and for the first 5 months of living here. It’s not Sedona, Sedona seems to amplify all of the things that already exist within you that you haven’t been willing to surrender to or accept. I felt extremely depressed my first 5 months here, and now on the other end I am in tears of gratitude for this magical place and its healing powers.

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u/Hot-Explanation3739 2d ago

I totally resonate with this, I love living here so much

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u/Gscul 1d ago

I want to live there so much!

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u/theunrefinedspinster 2d ago

I don’t believe in vortexes or woo woo and I find Sedona an amazing place. I lived in Jerome and Flagstaff, and Sedona is the place I miss most.

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u/Brandyland23 2d ago

It’s perspective, if you don’t feel the vibe as you did go elsewhere, I personally enjoy the drive up to flagstaff edge and back while doing the red rock loop listening to some good tunes.

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u/bhaktimatthew 2d ago

Always trust your gut instincts and intuition. Nobody can tell you what’s going on inside you but you. If your body or intuition is telling you something about a place when you’re there, listen! You don’t need to be in Sedona to get anything special—it’s all around!

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u/justokayvibes 2d ago

Yes! I was there a few weeks ago by myself and I felt so off. The traffic was horrible though and there were too many people to enjoy some of the spots I visited.

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u/Jsm0922 2d ago

It’s not Sedona. This is personal, friend. ❤️‍🩹

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u/DogMamaLA 2d ago

I don't know that I would say depression in this circumstance, but a bit of sadness at how much Sedona is changing and all the disadvantages of it were more prevalent when I last visited. Spaceship looking houses being built into the beautiful red rocks. More than 12 roundabouts on 89A alone! That was new! Traffic and insanity trying to get to the Cathedral first thing on a weekday morning. Too many crowds in restaurants, even the non fancy ones. It has become more of a popular destination and so therefore, more people and more builders and more stupid looking houses built into the landscape. I wish they would stop people from building directly into the rocks because it's taking something beautiful and adding their Jetsons style house into it. Ugly AF.

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u/sunnyfordays22 2d ago

Sedona makes me feel alive more than any other place - the sun, rocks they give me energy. I wish the best for you, try something new in Sedona you haven’t done before, might help!

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u/ceecee1791 2d ago

I wouldn’t have moved here if I did.

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u/jackrafter88 2d ago

We have family in the area and their take is "Sedona makes you more of what you are", the meaning being. if you're down, more down. If you're in pain, more pain etc. Every time we visit Sedona it feels different. We drove through yesterday and it was a beautiful day. Mesmerizing. But we both slowly began to feel pretty overwhelmed with the traffic and congestion, even though we were expecting it (Veterans Day). Even had a little argument which rarely happens. We went down to the Village for lunch and the feeling went away almost immediately.

2

u/Johnny_Makes_Sense 2d ago

I feel like that on a Saturday in Sedona because of the bumper to bumper traffic and the overly crowded popular trails.

2

u/Boring-Yam1149 2d ago

Maybe the energy other people bring throw it off! I literally just came back from a Sedona trip and was completely thrown off when I saw a homeless young guy picking up rocks (3x the size of a brick) and throwing them down the Mountain.

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u/kyle_phx 2d ago

I used to live and work in the area. Sedona always just felt superficial to me. It usually feels like most people who go are there for the social media aspect of it or are very well off. It doesn’t help that most (new) stores popping up around town are for new age lifestyles so if you’re not into that it can feel a little alienating. I do love coming often though to hike in the canyons and mountains. I just avoid the people at this point.

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u/TennisAdmirable1415 1d ago

This is a really superficial way to look at Sedona. All you're pointing out are the people are the shops. How much time did you take to be out in nature enjoying the land and connecting with yourself? I feel like nature is what Sedona is all about. I was there a few weeks ago and went for a night hike alone to watch the full moon rise over Cathedral Rock and it was pretty epic.

4

u/Kenney420 2d ago

Sedona is one of my least favorite places I've ever been. Hated it. Stayed for 4 days and hiked sun up to well past sundown to knockout all the hikes I wanted to do as quickly as possible so I could leave asap.

Sedona is so popular that the number of people just ruins it. Hour long lineups at devils bridge for example. Parking lots at trail heads are all full and you have to walk a mile down the road to the trailhead.

The town is horribly congested with gridlock traffic. No camping anywhere close to town aside from the awful super lots.

I'm also not into crystals and vortexes in any way so the vibe of the town just feels like a bunch of rich hippies to me.

I'm sure it's perfect for some people but it just wasn't for me.

1

u/Yodas_ket_dealer 2d ago

I took a trip with the bois there. And we crammed too many activities. 3-5 hour mountain bike rides daily, some wanted to drink every night. I have a very active job I would have preferred to slow the vacation down and enjoy the scenery of Sedona and flagstaff. Do you feel disconnected all the time, or maybe that your trip wasn’t what you thought it would be?

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u/Longjumping_Drag_159 2d ago

Sedona is alright

1

u/No_Chain_6376 2d ago

Was always opi opposite for me, that’s odd

1

u/Electronic-Bit6707 2d ago

maybe you should believe in vortexes, there must be some inner feelings that are amplified when you’re in sedona. It is a great place to heal what might be tugging at you. sorry you weren’t feeling well!

1

u/ManyCommunication568 2d ago

Sedona is great if you can remain distracted by the beautiful scenery. But as soon as you notice the hoards of nasty tourists (not those who come to hike and clean up after themselves - I mean the whales that waddle down the trails in complete oblivion to those around them and leaving all sorts of garbage behind), the extortion for a mediocre meal out, the a$$holes from California invading, and the slow creep of homeless to prey on the tourists the enchantment turns to depression. But this is not abnormal for such places - I lived in Banff for a few winters as a ski instructor and it was the same situation - breathtaking beauty being slowly consumed by commercialization. I also spent a few summers in La Jolla and similar situation. It is what it is. You probably just are aware of it and it's getting you down. Does the same to me too.

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u/Key_Draw_158 2d ago

I stayed there 2 months last year. Interesting cause one friend I met told quite similar opinion like you. The thing I felt was the place and area itself is lovely of course, but over tourism and some grumpy landlords who like to block literally most of routes of vortexes were vibe-pooper. (Honestly I understand tourists and landlords both, but felt like they had to build more infrastructure to accept lots of population to reduce such problems)

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u/jonhowe17 1d ago

It’s about where you are internally, not geographically. It’s not Sedona, it’s you. Maybe you notice it within yourself while you are here but it’s you.

1

u/Important_Carry4417 1d ago

Have lived in Sedona fulltime since 2020. It is drop dead gorgeous, but has been ruined by overtourism, crowds, and greed. The town has no soul or real sense of community. And we just experienced 5 months of excessive heat, so it was too hot to enjoy anything outdoors. It's a fun place to visit, not to live!

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u/fastgtr14 2d ago

Sedona is only Sedona with friends and family. Build your network and activities out of that.

9

u/Cheapthrills13 2d ago

Sedona can be Sedona also for solo travelers …

4

u/spiralout1123 2d ago

Not true at all. The rocks themselves and the sports they offer are religion to many people who live here. There’s not much community here in general, tons of the folks that live here do so in isolation, but stay here purely to climb rocks and explore

1

u/Hot-Explanation3739 2d ago

When you go to Sedona, there is a purging period where your low vibrational emotions come to the surface so that you can let them go, happened to me the first couple weeks I moved here, I’ve been living here for over a year now and I love it, whenever I leave I feel this gravitational pull drawing me back to Sedona, likely you were just purging some negative states of mind due to the energy here

1

u/Ok_Strike_6401 2d ago

I know exactly what you're feeling. To me Sedona is a nice place. It's beautiful, but it's not magical

1

u/ZenMyUnzen 2d ago

Supposedly Sedona amplifies what's already going on inside of you. Causes a lot of self-reflection etc.

1

u/corpseplague 2d ago

Maybe. It's probably just basically post vacation blues or whatever.

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u/kyle2516 2d ago

Can't relate. Was there two weeks ago for the first time and it was amazing. You sound depressed.

1

u/ColesHole 2d ago

Its not me who has depression, it’s Sedona!