We’re bound to feel homesick when we initially move from home to a new country. We’re alone, insecure and unsure about what lies in the future. There are many questions in your mind but no one or no way to get answers to those questions.
Whether you come here as an International Student, a working employee or on a dependent visa. The questions in our heads are more or less the same
Where is my school?
How will I manage everything on my own?
Will I understand their language?
Will they understand my language?
Will I be able to understand the lectures in classroom?
So on and so forth.
While going through this phase, we’re bound to think of our comfortable life back home. We start longing for that comfortable feeling of home and start feeling homesick.
There are many reasons why people get homesick. Some of the reasons are as follows:
Missing friends & family
Hard to find local or traditional food
Hard to adjust with culture, time zone and weather.
Language barriers
New environment, people and location
In this blog I will share 10 things that helped me overcome my homesickness as a new international student. You need not follow or implement all of them. To each their own. But I know these worked for me and if it could help even a single person, I’ll be happy.
Activities which helped me get over my homesickness:
Exercise
It does sound terrible but when you exercise you will focus on your body and your mind will be focusing more on exercise then thinking about home. Also, it will keep you healthy and fit. NOTE: going to hospital is expensive for us(internationals) so better to be healthy than sorry later.
Attend events or meetups (whether you’re in school or otherwise)
Most schools have both traditional and international events which are organized by the university for the involvement of the students, so they have something new other than studying. For non-students, there are plenty of meetups that happen in major cities across the country. If you’re not located nearby a big city, there are always Facebook groups of your town that regularly help meetups. The idea is to basically put yourself out there
Explore
There are many places hidden or otherwise which can be fun to go at or whenever you feel like you need to be alone from everyone. For instance: I discovered there was a lake where I can go if I want to enjoy the nature.
Use student services
Many universities have consulting services for all students who are in need. Also, its just a place where you go and talk to someone, to feel relieved. They are always there for students who need to talk to someone and provide them care if they need any. For those who aren’t students,
Don’t compare yourself with others
You will find many people who might be of the same race and same nationality in your community and university. Try not to compare yourself with them because you won’t be happy.
Everyone works or lives at a different pace and you need to find yours rather than try to catch up with theirs.
Start writing blogs or a personal dairy
The best way to channelize your thoughts and emotions is to write it down. You can do it either by creating a blog that will help you share your thoughts with others as well or you can opt to keep it private in your own personal diary.
So. if you want to start a blog for your new chapter of moving to another country, it’s never too late. It feels good when you start writing and share with your community.
Certifications
Take certification courses which are free on websites like cousera, edx udemy, skillshare, Alison, udacity and many more.
Go on vacations
I personally practice this. From time to time, I go to different places where I won’t feel homesick. I started by going to places that are similar to my home country. For instance, I went to NYC because it was similar to my home country and there were many things that were similar to how things are back home.
Try to do something which you like to do in your leisure time. It will keep you busy and give you something to do. There are many activities which one can explore later in life and start loving it.
For instance, one might not like cooking when they are home, but after moving abroad they have to cook and while doing it on daily basis they might find cooking therapeutic.
Learn something new
Many people try to stick with their daily routine but instead if they learn something new, they’ll not only be able to learn a new thing or pick up a skill but may end up finding another great hobby and at the same time learn something unique.
For instance: I learnt how to make a flyer.
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