According to Wikipedia HOMESICKNESS is the distress caused by being away from home. It’s hallmark symptom is preoccupying thoughts of home and attachment objects. Sufferers typically report a combination of depressive and anxious symptoms, withdrawn behaviour and difficulty focusing on topics unrelated to home. I moved to Berlin at the beginning of August and felt […]

The biggest challenge facing expats is the loss of your personal support networks. The first few weeks in an unfamiliar location are usually the most challenging. It was difficult to leave my family, friends and colleagues behind when I moved overseas. It was especially hard as the only person I knew in Berlin was my

When I first moved overseas I found myself not working for the first time in my life. I felt completely out of my depth. I didn’t have a job. I didn’t know anyone besides my new husband. I didn’t speak the language. I didn’t even know what to do with myself during the day when

Before I moved overseas, I had always worked. I lied about my age to get my first job in a restaurant at 15, and have worked ever since. I would have described myself as the type A work-a-holic personality too. I dove into jobs where I didn’t really know what I was doing, or wasn’t

When I moved to Berlin, I didn’t know a lick of German, not one word. My husband is German, so I had convinced myself that it wouldn’t be so bad. If I had problems communicating, I just assumed I would be able to lean on him. The reality was that most of those moments happened

I was living overseas in Frankfurt when 9/11 happened. I will never forget where I was and what I was doing at that time. Watching those pictures on my computer at work is ingrained in my memory forever. A flood of thoughts and emotions rolled over me afterwards. I was worried about my friends and

I’m here to talk to you today about why this big CHANGE you just made by moving overseas is the best thing you could have done for yourself.  You might not yet be in a place to believe me. When I first moved overseas to Berlin, I found it exciting, because I was looking at

Moving is considered one of the top 5 stressful life events. Getting married is in the top 10.  So you can imagine the state I was in while planning my wedding and my move overseas at the same time. One of the first fights I got into with my soon to be husband was about

I find as an expat that my BELIEFS come into question quite often. Suddenly I was aware that I believed stores and banks should be open when I find it convenient, freezers should be bigger than a shoe box, laws should be just, and all people should be treated equally. These were BELIEFS that I