You’ll also discover that during this time, you come to accept everything you used to know so well about home. These are an unfortunate reality of passing time, and it’s okay to feel a bit sad about them. You might fall out of touch with study abroad friends. You might forget the specific details of something you experienced abroad that caused you frustration or confusion. Stage #5: Acceptance & engagementĪt some point, you’ll eventually re-integrate with life at home. During this time, you’re slowly reconciling your experiences abroad with your life back home (you may even realize that “home” is a much more fluid concept than you thought now that you’ve had more than one). You might find that you cycle through phases 3 and 4 a few times in the first few months after returning home from study abroad. You’ll probably miss your new study abroad friends, and maybe your host family too if you stayed with one. It’s that feeling when you deeply miss your study abroad experience and your host country. Phase 3 almost always triggers Phase 4, which we’re calling bittersweet nostalgia. You might suddenly realize that some of those comforts and conveniences aren’t as comfortable or convenient as they were before - because you’ve seen how the world works somewhere else, and maybe they’ve got a better way of doing things! Phase #4: Bittersweet nostalgia You might wonder why people line up this way instead of lining up that way like they did back when you were studying abroad. You might be frustrated by public transportation options at home, after a semester of easily hopping on trains and buses to get around. Phase #3: Confusing frustrationĪfter a few days or weeks, you might find yourself confused and/or frustrated by things that never bothered you before. It may seem like this phase will last forever (and we wish it could!).įor many study abroad students though, there are more emotional phases to experience. The comforts of home, the joy of seeing family and friends, the ability to eat your favorite foods and watch your favorite shows, and the conveniences of the culture you grew up in will all feel great. Just like when experiencing culture shock, you might find that you experience a ‘honeymoon’ phase when you return from study abroad. You board the plane home, arrive, catch up on sleep… and then what? Phase #2: The honeymoon What have your friends been up to? How is your family? Even if you’ve kept in touch while studying abroad, you might not know everything that has happened. After a few weeks or months abroad, you might wonder what has changed - and how much it has changed. In the final days of studying abroad, you’ll probably feel excited, and a bit nervous. While the stages of culture shock might seem complicated - it turns out that reverse culture shock is even more of an emotional rollercoaster! Let’s break down the stages so you can understand what you might feel (or are currently feeling, if you just returned home!). ![]() As long as you have an understanding of what you're going through, it's safe to say that not only will you push through these confusing and difficult times, but will, in fact, come out on top. ![]() This is what we call reverse culture shock, where you’re learning who you are and how you fit into your culture after returning home from study abroad. This strain and stress can sometimes invoke a sense of helplessness or a loss of identity. It can be difficult for them to understand your whole transformative experience, and you may find it hard to balance fulfilling old roles and breaking in new ones. You have new habits, values, and ideas, sometimes without even realizing it!įamily, friends, and neighbors may find it difficult to comprehend the changes you have been through and may expect you to be the same person that left. You have been transformed intellectually and personally, and have successfully functioned in a culture entirely different from your own. The person you are now returning from abroad is not the same person who left in the first place. Just as studying abroad demanded a number of lifestyle changes, so too does returning home.
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