BAM. There it is. It came out of nowhere. Something or some thought made you start crying like a baby. Did you see it coming? Nope, you weren´t prepared for it. Because you were actually doing fine. Or at least that´s what you thought you were doing. Homesickness hit you.

Homesickness always creeps up unprepared. And anything can set you off; from a phone call, to a song to a memory. You suddenly feel broken hearted for the separation from your home country and you wish you could be there in an instant.

It wasn´t until our first guest from the Netherlands had just left, when I experienced the acute moment of homesickness for the first time. After one year of beating culture shock and going through the process of saying goodbye to my trusted home, I didn´t see this coming at all.

I thought I was done with most of the emotional reactions, but apparently I wasn´t. Even more interesting: the homesick feeling disappeared as quickly as it came. The next day, I felt perfectly fine again, energized to continue my life abroad as I had built it up.

The Tiny Homesickness Triggers

It´s to call impressive how small the things are that trigger homesickness. Even the subtlest reminders of home can cause an uncontrollable crying fit. Sometimes it´s a smell, taste, sound, picture, song or movie. Other times it´s a voice, text message or e-mail. Whatever causes the pain; it is pretty powerful and transports us mentally over thousands of miles.

Without a warning, your world is pulled apart. You feel the ache and can´t do anything about it. Compare it to catching a cold: All of a sudden your nose starts running, you want to get rid of it, nothing works, and before you know it you feel perfectly healthy again.

Homesickness is as much an illness as catching a cold is. With the mere difference of virus which is mental and random.

Homesickness is Acute and Intensive

I used to confuse feeling homesick with missing home and missing family and friends. I learned that homesickness is more acute and it has a more intensive impact. When I miss home, I don´t burst into tears every time I think of it. Homesickness, on the contrary, is furious and makes you ache in an instant of time. There is no holding back those tears.

What applies to missing home, also applies to feeling culture shocked, stressed, lonely, nostalgic, etc. Those are strong feelings as well but are rather natural reactions to the radical change of life. You feel upset but you don´t necessarily feel homesick. You are, however, most certainly more susceptible to the tiny homesickness triggers.

We never know when homesickness will strike, but it is more likely to catch us when we feel emotionally unsteady.

What to Do When Your World is Pulled Apart

When homesickness hits, you feel an overwhelming desire to be in your home country. Unless you can buy a ticket for the next plane home, there is not much you can do. You can allow the sorrow, feel the pain and wait until it’s over.

In the meantime, grab some photos, watch a movie and listen to music that reminds you of what you long for. Get in touch with your near ones and this is the perfect moment to eat the cookies and candies you brought from home.

Good news for me: Next week I am flying to the Netherlands! I haven´t seen my family, friends and precious country for one and a half year. You can imagine that I can´t wait to set foot on land. I´ll bring lots of Mexican souvenirs with me, and I´ll come back with plenty of Dutch comfort food and stuff that will help me ease in times of homesickness.

Do you recognize this type of homesickness?
What are the tiny homesickness triggers that make you instantly long for home?