Adventure abroad: A journey full of challenges and opportunities

☝️ The most important things in brief

• Homesickness and stress abroad are normal and signs of attachment to home.
• Symptoms include loneliness, irritability, sleep disturbances, and changes in appetite.
• Bringing personal items with you and staying in regular contact with family and friends can help.
• Making new friends and staying socially active promote adjustment.
• A positive focus and planned activities make it easier to deal with homesickness and stress.

We would like to give you tips and strategies for dealing with homesickness and stress so that you can cope with these feelings more easily during your nursing internship, clinical internship, or practical year.

Understanding the feeling of homesickness

The longing for familiar surroundings, your own home, family, and friends—the feeling of homesickness is multifaceted and can manifest differently in everyone. When you lose your familiar surroundings, it is perfectly normal to feel lonely, even though you are surrounded by lots of new people, for example. If you suddenly find yourself more irritable or frustrated than usual, this can also be a sign of homesickness. Feeling unwell, having trouble sleeping, and changes in your appetite are also indications that you are currently suffering from homesickness or stress.

Strength through homesickness: a sign of connection

Homesickness does not make you appear weak. It simply shows your connection to the places and people that are very important to you.

Adapting to a new environment: Tips for coping with homesickness

It is important to give yourself time to get used to your new environment, as the symptoms of homesickness and the associated stress usually subside over time. To avoid falling into bad habits, there are a few tips that can help you cope with these feelings.

Alleviate homesickness with personal items

Take personal, important items with you: To prevent the loss of familiarity, you can simply take your personal and important items with you on your internship in Sri Lanka or Nepal. Create a familiar environment by taking photos of your family and friends with you, or your bedding that smells like your room.

Harness the power of family and friends

Stay in touch with your family and friends: Don't forget that you can call your friends and family at any time. Staying in touch with loved ones is extremely important for our well-being and can significantly minimize feelings of homesickness and stress. You can also use this contact to confide in someone about your feelings.

Make new friends and distract yourself

Make new friends: Of course, staying in touch with home is important. But it's even more important not to isolate yourself socially when you're homesick. Your nursing internship, clinical rotation, or practical year should be filled with fun, new memories, and cool new people. So be brave and actively approach new people and make contact with other travelers. Your feelings of homesickness will certainly diminish when you distract yourself with new contacts who help you feel more comfortable in your new surroundings.

Homesickness and stress abroad can be tough, but they are part of the adventure. It's okay to feel homesick or overwhelmed sometimes. With a positive attitude, openness, new habits, and social contacts, we can overcome these feelings.