Homesickness: Environmental

Environmental Homesickness is one of multiple types of homesickness you can experience, and may be more intense if you are living away from home or away from where you grew up for the first time. While feeling homesick can be difficult, there are ways to plan ahead, identify when you’re feeling homesick, and put your plan into action to help you manage and overcome these feelings.

What is environmental homesickness?

This is a longing for the physical surroundings and also for the more general surroundings or conditions in which you have been accustomed to living. Examples of specific places can include: your childhood bedroom, your favourite park, or a local café or club.

It can include a craving for comfort items, such as a favourite blanket, pillow, or other items that you associate with comfort and give you a sense of familiarity.

Environmental homesickness can also include missing familiar scents or sounds. This could include the smell of your garden or a restaurant you went to frequently. It could also be sounds you associated with your favourite outdoors space or club.

Planning for environmental homesickness

As with experiencing any kind of homesickness, acknowledging that these feelings are common and a normal response to change and separation from familiar environments is an important first step. Accepting that these feelings are likely to occur at different times and to different degrees can help you manage them and get through them when you experience them.

Bring familiar items

Bringing some items from home that have a big connection to comfort, security, and familiarity can be really helpful. Maybe this means bringing your favourite blanket, pillow, or a special stuffed animal with you. You might also like to bring some photos, pieces of clothing with special significance, or even books or other physical items that help give you a sense of comfort.

Create a similar kind of environment in your new home

You can do this in your new room by putting up decorations that are similar to those you had at home, or even having scented oils or other similar devices that can bring familiar or comforting scents into your new space.

Find new spaces that are similar environments to ones you liked at home

It can be fun to find a new club or café in your new location that has a similar kind of vibe or soundscape to ones you appreciated at home. Spending time in local parks to see if you can find a spot that gives you a sense of peace and comfort like one you picked out at home can be an enjoyable new adventure.

Planning for support

It can also be really helpful to talk with a friend or family member about the possibility of experiencing different kinds of homesickness, and getting them to agree to be someone you can reach out to when you’re experiencing these feelings. Having someone to talk to about your emotions and feelings of homesickness can help you work through them. It can also be helpful to talk to a new friend about mutual experiences with homesickness.

Plan visits home

Sometimes, just knowing that you have a plan to visit home and spend time in places and environments that are comfortable and restorative for you can help you get through feelings of homesickness while you’re away.

Identifying feelings of homesickness

Here are a few indicators that you might be feeling environmental homesickness

1. You find yourself frequently longing for specific places or environments from home.

2. You frequently miss familiar scents associated with home.

3. You constantly think or talk about missing your own home or environments.

4. You are having trouble feeling comfortable or settled in your new surroundings.

5. You continually compare your current environment to your home, especially in a way that finds fault with where you are.

6. Sleeplessness or anxiety that’s associated with being unable to get or feel comfortable in the spaces you are in.

7. Avoiding exploring your new surroundings or joining in local activities because you’re preoccupied with thoughts of home.

Wrap Up

If you identify with several of these signs, it's likely that you're experiencing environmental homesickness. Recognizing these feelings is an essential first step in addressing them. Coping strategies may include gradually creating a sense of home in your new space, seeking out familiar scents or objects, connecting with local culture, and finding support from friends or professionals who understand your experience. Remember that environmental homesickness is a common and temporary feeling that often lessens as you become more accustomed to your new surroundings.

Having these plans for managing environmental homesickness helps you manage and get through your emotions, but they don’t stop them from happening. It’s important to recognise and acknowledge the emotions you feel rather than trying to stuff them down and ignore them.