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NOT SO FAST: VISITING HOME AGAIN YOUR FIRST VISIT HOME AFTER LIVING ABROAD CAN BE SURPRISINGLY DIFFICULT. IT CAN BE STARLING TO SUDDENLY RETURN TO YOUR OLD ENVIRONMENT, AS A RADICALLY DIFFERENT PERSON.
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TEXT BAILEY JENSEN
TO NAVIGATE YOUR first visit home again, it’s important to anticipate reverse culture shock, acknowledge your changing values, and prepare for saying goodbye.
REVERSE CULTURE SHOCK Reverse culture shock is the difficulty of readjusting to the culture, norms, and values of your home country after living out of the country. After my first eleven months abroad in Denmark, I visited my home for the first time in the United States. Except for visiting England once, I had not been in a country with English as the first language for nearly a year. To put it simply, I became accustomed to not understanding Danish around me, so I unconsciously tuned out some of the outside noise, such as people talking to one another. During my first layover in the United States, I was shocked to understand countless conversations surrounding me. It felt like a switch went off in my head and I now had this superpower of understanding exactly what people were saying to me. Besides the more obvious contrasts of American and Danish cultures, I found myself deeply missing the place that I left and jumping at the chance to talk about
DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE IMPORTANCE OF PREPARING TO GO BACK ABROAD AND SAYING GOODBYE.
BAILEY JENSEN BLOGGER & STUDENT where I was living. In the same instance, I would then get irrationally irritated at my home country. I began to get annoyed at everything, including why Montana does not have any public transportation? Why can’t you just drink a beer on the street? Why do all the shops close extremely early? One of my biggest annoyances coming back to North America was their lack of being upfront. American’s call their notorious lack of bluntness and forwardness as beating around the bush. I began to truly appreciate the Dane’s quality of being upfront about the truth and with one another. Now being in a country where that was no longer the norm, this took some adjusting.
A CHANGE OF VALUES Half-way through my year studying abroad in Denmark, I met my Danish husband Rune and quickly became accustomed to the Danish culture. I greatly underestimated how much I had changed as a person and how drastically my set of values changed. Thinking back, the changing of my values was natural, considering what I was exposed to. I quickly adapted to my new environment by taking on
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new habits like the natives in Denmark. While you may be a different person now, the core of your being will remain unchanged. This unique set of experiences and change can be quite isolating, for people will never truly understand what you have been through. Quit while you are ahead and take solace in the notion that while people may not know exactly about your experiences, they can always empathize and listen.
Bailey Ann Jensen is an
SAYING GOODBYE
ley is getting her bachelor’s
Do not underestimate the importance of preparing to go back abroad and saying goodbye. Begin preparing mentally a few days before your departure abroad again. When it comes to leaving, always leave with a potential return date to communicate with your friends and family. This helps the pain of leaving and leaves excitement for the future. Also, do not forget to bring small things back to Denmark that reminds you of home. Personally, I always bring back a different toy dinosaur to play with my nephew over video chat with. Leaving your loved ones with something tangible is a direct connection to them and becomes valuable. THE-INTL
American expat in Aarhus, Denmark since 2013 and is from Helena, Montana. She originally came to Denmark as an exchange student at Aarhus University for one year, where she met her Danish husband. Now living in Denmark permanently, Baidegree in political science and is an international nanny for families in Aarhus. In her free time, she makes sense of her multicultural life around her with her blog about becoming a Dane: Dane in Training. For frequent new blog posts, check out her website and daily pictures on Instagram www.daneintraining.com @daneintraining