Leaving your old life and taking residence in an entirely different country can be challenging. Being an expat can be a difficult task and give rise to many problems that you were not previously used to. Mental health is among one of the many difficulties frequently reported by expats.
Some challenges can arise due to not being able to cope with day-to-day tasks. While living abroad can be a rewarding experience, many expats and their families face mental health problems and issues that they find hard to deal with. Several people show reluctance to admit they are facing psychological problems, while others are not aware enough to categorize them as issues in the first place.
Detection of a problem is the first step towards the solution. Following points will help you determine whether or not you need a therapeutic check-up as an expat
1. Prolonged Sadness
Your feelings of sadness and grief are not going away. It’s been a while since you moved places, but you still feel sad and unable to accept this change into your daily life.
You have no motivation to participate in new things and don’t find your previous hobbies interesting. You feel emotions of worthlessness, irritability and feelings of guilt after you relocated.
2. Inability to cope with daily problems
You find it challenging to meet the demands of day-to-day problems. You have issues adjusting to the diet and cannot seem to develop a healthy appetite. You don’t feel hunger like you once did.
Your sleep habits are disturbed. You either can’t sleep or sleep too much. Similarly, your diet, weight and thinking have also been affected. The depression you once faced is creeping in into other areas of your life.
3. Social Withdrawal
You feel like you are trapped in your own house. You don’t find it comfortable to communicate with the natives of your new country. This isolation has caused increased loneliness.
Similarly, at work or school, you shy away and face social anxiety when talking with your colleagues or class fellows. You face language barriers and find it hard to reach out.
4. Substance abuse
You find yourself smoking or drinking more than usual. You have developed an addiction either due to loneliness or as a coping mechanism to deal with your underlying issues such as depression and sadness.
You are dependent on many new pharmaceuticals to keep yourself in check. You have also started facing new problems such as delusions. Either way, your substance abuse has increased more than usual.
5. Feelings of suicide and death
If you face this one factor, you need to seek support immediately. Expats often develop feelings of suicide or self-harm due to prolonged sadness and inability to cope with their issues.
You find your situation to be that of hopelessness, worthlessness and withdrawal from everything. You even feel reckless at times and don’t care if even if something dangerous happens.
Conclusion
Expat mental problems are real issues that need proper attention. If you find yourself having all or some of these problems, it could indicate that you require a check-up. Visiting your nearest therapist or getting therapeutic help online can prove to be highly beneficial and help you lift that sadness off of your shoulders, so your journey can be happy and stress-free.
