Coping with Loneliness When Living Abroad (Victoria)

When you first relocate overseas there are no two ways about it, you will probably encounter at least a few moments of strong loneliness. Even if you relocate with your family in tow, the fact that everything is so new and so unfamiliar can really rock your boat. You will be looking around you for something to anchor you in your new life – and because you won’t necessarily immediately find it, the most familiar sensation that you will experience is loneliness. However, you are not really alone! Therefore this is the very first point that you need to hold on to. For those who have family with them and/or who have moved to a location where they already have friends or know some familiar faces, reach out and have some social contact in a relaxed setting to settle yourself.

For others who are physically alone in their new setting with no familiar faces around them, an immediate solution is making contact with people back home. This will ground you, it will tell you that life is continuing as it always has, that those who are important in your life are still a constant presence in your life. This should hopefully give you the strength and courage you need to build up a new network of friends, familiar faces, acquaintances and colleagues in your new country abroad. This is how you stave off any long-term feelings of loneliness…and it is very much up to you to work consistently hard at making friends and putting yourself in a position to meet people and spend time with them.