Dealing with homesickness is something that’s rarely talked about on travel blogs. While we are busy extolling the virtues of travel and why everyone should pack their bags immediately, it’s easy to forget that sometimes, travel is hard work!
Exploring a new city and discovering new ideas and cultures is amazing but that sudden jolt away from what is ‘normal’ to you can be difficult to process. But this doesn’t mean that people who experience homesickness shouldn’t travel. It just means that you need a few clever tricks up your sleeve to help you feel better.
Plan in a Day of Rest
If you are visiting a few different places along the way, all that travelling can quickly pile up. Planning in a day of rest might sound like a waste of time but, actually, you will enjoy the rest of your trip more if you are in the right mindset.
How you like to rest is entirely up to you. You might like to cuddle up in front of the TV watching your favourite shows in which case learning how to make a Firestick work in any country would be very useful – lucky troypoint.com has instructions for setting up a VPN! Alternatively, you might like to sit by a pool with a good book, find a local cafe and people watch for a few hours or write in your journal.
Get in Touch with Home
Feeling separated from home can increase the power of homesickness. This, if nothing else, is a very good reason to call home! There are a few ways to get in touch and calling via the internet is often the cheapest way – as long as you have wi-fi. Chatting with your friends and family will give you peace of mind that everyone is okay and give you an opportunity to relay some of your experiences.
But phone calls aren’t the only method. The postcard may be a dying art but it can be a lovely way to communicate. By sending a postcard home (or simply writing one for delivery when you get back) you can share your experiences in a different way and still feel that sense of connection.
Practice Gratitude
You are incredibly lucky to be travelling but when you feel homesick, it’s easy to lose sight of this simple fact. Practicing gratitude is all about shifting your mindset by focusing on the things you are happy about and feel thankful for.
The aim isn’t to deny your homesickness, but more to skew your perspective so that it doesn’t ruin your trip. For example, you might realise that you are grateful for your family but you are also grateful for the chance to explore on your own. The two don’t have to be mutually exclusive.
Homesickness will affect most travellers at some point and the longer you are away, the more likely you are to experience it. This is a normal feeling and, once you have learned how you deal with it best, it won’t hold you back. Like everything in travel, it’s all a matter of perspective.