Student blogs

I thought I could never leave the home I grew up in, go to a foreign country, and just begin my life from scratch in a new environment at the age of 18. It’s undoubtedly a scary decision for a highschooler to take. It comes with guilt for leaving family behind, fear of being lonely, missing loved ones and just “home” in general. But I’m here to reassure you that its not as daughnting as you might think. During my first year I kept on waiting for a crisis to hit me, a period of depressing homesickeness- but it still hasn’t hit me!

I discovered that if you embrace what the new city or country has to offer, you have the wonderful opportunity of finding a new home. Sometimes I catch myself saying, “I’ll be back home,” when I actually mean “back in Sweden,”…shows just how much I feel at home in Stockholm.

So what’s my “medication” against homesickness? How have I avoided it? Over time, I’ve developed a few strategies that I think have really helped me:

1. Keep busy

I don’t spend much time in my apartment, I find it much more fun to be out and about as much as possible. (I literally just go home to meal prep and sleep.) I fill my days with student organization activities, studying, going to swedish classes, going to the gym, just randomly exploring the city, or going out with friends. This is not only the best way to make the most of your time in Sweden, but also the best medication against homesickness. Quite simply, you won’t have the time to dwell too much on what you’ve left behind. You’ll be too excited with what all you have to explore and do in Stockholm.

2. Be social and build a new family

Making close friends is really important. I would say that these friends become a second family. It helps so much knowing you have someone to lean on in a foreign country. And its easy to make these kind of connections with your international classmates who are going through very similar thoughts and challenges as you.

3. See your family every day

Well, not in person, but over the phone. I facetime my family so often that when I visit back home it feels like not much time has passed.

4. Eat well and with good company

I find that cooking is a relaxing activity, and can make you feel more connected to home especially when making meals that remind you of home. What makes cooking even more fun is when you cook with friends. Cooking dinners with friends or hosting small cookouts brings people together, it can feel like a family sitting down to have dinner. It definitely can give a lot of comfort.

5. Embrace the new city and all the experiences it has to offer

Finally, whenever I start to feel down, or start contemplating what my life would’ve been like if I never left home I remind myself of how amazing it is that I get to experience living abroad. Aside from gaining a degree, I am learning how to live indendently, in a foreign country, a new cutlure, a new way of living. And I think this truly helps shape you as a person, broadening your perspectives on the world.

Stockholm is a wonderful city to explore, a unique opportunity for new experiences and friendships. If you make it your mission to try and get to know Stockholm the best you possibly can, then it’ll grow onto you.

Homesickness is normal, but it doesn’t have to take over. With a mix of keeping yourself busy, social connection, keeping touch with home, and embracing your surroundings, I think you can make any city feel like home.