Homesickness

Youth Exchange would be different for everyone. During the first week some will be thrown into a serious language camp, others will be dropped off at school first thing on day one of their exchange and others will have a few days of relaxing in their new environment. Once the excitement of being on exchange starts to wear off, homesickness may start to take over. You will start to compare everything to your home. You may begin to miss your friends, family, and pets. It will be like a rollercoaster of emotions.

I never felt like I wanted to go home but I would wake up in the morning feeling really sad. I felt unmotivated to do anything and some days I was holding back tears until the moment I went back to bed. This would happen for a whole week and the only way I could keep pushing on was to know that tomorrow something exciting might happen. By keeping a very busy schedule you can avoid feeling horrible. Surround yourself with people and try new things. The weather really affected my moods as well. During the winter when it was gloomy and cold in New York I had a hard time. You just need to continuously see the positives and look towards tomorrow.

Feeling a sense of belonging is important for anyone so look towards your new found friends and host family to fill any gaps in your life. Your exchange program might be able to do this as well. I went on exchange through the Rotary International Youth Exchange program. For those of you who know what Rotary is or have gone on exchange with them will know that the Rotary Clubs meet on a weekly basis. I made an effort to attend every meeting and form a relationship with them. This allowed me to have something to look forward to. I quickly became a part of a number of those Rotarians and their families which was a really special part of my exchange. Find yourself a place where you belong while one exchange and you will have a much more memorable exchange experience.

For more information on the Rotary International Youth Exchange Program you can contact your local Rotary Club or alternatively check out their website http://www.rotary.org/.