No one goes into the au pair program thinking they will be
homesick. I can probably say that the majority of our candidates listen to our
preparation workshops thinking that it does not pertain to them at all. The
fact is however that we see almost 9 out of 10 au pairs getting homesick. It is
something that happens to almost everyone, but of course to varying degrees.
As we say in a lot of our courses, homesickness can be
anything from just a slight longing to full-blown sadness. It can be triggered
from anything from spending Christmas eve away from your family to clicking
through Facebook pictures of what your friends are doing back home. The most
important thing to remember, however severe your homesickness is, is that it is
okay. You are allowed to feel homesickness, to feel sad, and, most importantly,
to ask for help.
We at Cultural Care Au Pair have over 26 years of experience dealing
with this. We have a lot of advice, tips, and tricks to get through those tough
times. The majority of us have even been au pairs ourselves and those tips come
directly from our own personal experience. Your host family also understands
where you are coming from, that you are in a new country, and that you are
leaving things behind. Your new au pair friends will also be in the same boat
as you and might just be too afraid to be the one to bring it up.
I personally believe that one of the best ways to get
through homesickness is having the right expectations and attitude. Believing
in yourself is something that will get you far and will be useful no matter
which path you take in life. I do understand that it is easier said than done,
but going into your au pair time with the expectation that you WILL have tough
times and the attitude that you WILL get through it is the first step to a
successful experience.
