Source
r/AskReddit•
posts

I'm moving 1337 miles from my home in January. How do you fight homesickness?

So I just graduated college after 4.5 years of studying and papers. Come January I'm moving to the opposite side of the country to pursue a job at a startup. I'll know one other person down there and it will be the biggest move of my life. I can honestly say I'm terrified. I'm moving because there are no job opportunities where I live but the prospect of a successful startup also seems exciting. I'll be leaving behind my significant other of 3 years as well which is disconcerting.

How do you fight the homesickness? I've never been on my own or outside of driving distance to friends/family.

edit As some people have noticed, yes leet amount of miles. Google Maps says the drive is leet, but I look at the 20 hour time limit and disagree.

Posted Dec 21, 2009, 5:47 AM UTC · edited

341
[deleted]•

Quite an opportune amount of distance traveled.

25
soxxxxxxfan•

achievement unlocked

23
malconsidine•

loling at all that

3
MattyRog•

hack the planet!

0
CaptainTaylorCortez•

Go back after a couple monthes to remind yourself how bad it is

6
postsOP•

That made me chuckle. I hate it here when it comes to the economy. This town is dead and rotting. A good way to look at it.

3
LittleJackalope•

I agree with this! I moved from Austin, Texas to Auckland, New Zealand this past year. Austin is a great city, but there were a lot of things I wanted to leave and I was really excited to be going somewhere new after 20 years. About 3 months in though, the excitement of being in a new place began to wear off and I started having all of these wonderful memories about my hometown. I sort of romanticized my past lifestyle and my family to the point that I thought I wanted to move back home. I ended up having to head back for an unexpected visit a bit later and realized (after only two days at home) exactly why I moved to New Zealand!! Now I'm much happier here and feel more confident about my big move.

I do miss my family though... Christmas this year is going to be loooonely =( Thanksgiving was sad enough! We all have to make sacrifices in order to do what is best for ourselves though. Don't be frightened; be excited about the opportunity for growth and change!

1
MzScarlet03•

I moved 3,000 miles from home, knowing no one. The best way I found to fight loneliness/homesickness was to keep really busy. Every weekend when I wasn't working I scoured the internet to find fun and interesting activities to do. I went to concerts, museums, shopping, new restaurants, festivals, day trips, etc. It gave me fun stuff to talk about when I called home, not just the boring "how was work, etc." It also kept me from throwing a pity party, because I was having a blast, and it gave me less time to sit alone and think about stuff I was missing back home.

6
jfgiv•

Agreed. I kinda hated New York until I started actually, you know, doing stuff.

1
1corvidae1•

Damn I wish I thought of that but then I was in Macau... a place for gambling, not something Im fond off

1
[deleted]•

Get a hobby. I recommend masturbating and using your ejaculate to form a statue of your significant other out of the hardening semen. Since you'll have to work at it layer by layer with each new dollop of semen that you produce, it will be a nice project to keep you occupied and prevent you from missing your hometown.

5
trollmaster5000•

I'd definitely go with a mold as opposed to a sculpture. Or at least a basic mold in which to sculpt the details once the goof-juice is dried.

1
squirreltalk•

I can't for the life of me figure out why you got downvoted there. Does someone have really strong feelings about semen sculptures and molds???

3
[deleted]•

Call every day you can, get webcams and chat at night. Set something up where once a month you send something from where you are and they send you something from home.

3
frickthebreh•

Webcams are absolutely clutch in fighting homesickness. Myself, parents, and all my siblings are in different places, yet I talk to them face-to-face regularly via webcam. It actually does do a lot to see the person you are talking to in real time and see the environment they are in. It's way better than a phone call.

3
thatsnomoon•

How're you getting to the new place, ROFLCOPTER?

3
d0m0kun•

Actually, LOLLERJET to save money.

3
postsOP•

Packing everything into my shitty car and driving.

1
[deleted]•

STAND BACK CIVILIANS, I AM PREPARED FOR JUST THIS SORT OF THING.

3
henny_316•

What country do you live in where the opposite side is 1337 miles away?

2
postsOP•

I'm in the US. I'm around the great lakes, 1337 miles is the gulf.

3
PsyanideInk•

Whoa whoa whoa. You're not even leaving the country? Piece of cake.

Just don't let yourself be idle. Go out, be social, make friends, take a cooking class, etc. The less you allow yourself to sit around and miss home, the less you will. I also find video games great for this purpose because they're distracting and comforting. They're the same at home and on the road. Just don't play too much and find yourself getting cooped up.

I went from Atlanta to Philly for college and then Philly to Beijing, and never really got homesick. I missed home, but never felt a longing to go back or feeling that I was in the wrong place. It is just a matter of settling in and starting a life, instead of feeling like your life is back wherever home is.

2
henny_316•

Good call. As someone who lives on the gulf, welcome to the armpit of America.

1
trollmaster5000•

Ha! You won't have time to get homesick when you're getting owned by a hurricane! Welcome to the Gulf of MexEEEco!

1
drpetey•

buck up, do fun stuff, strike up a conversation any chance you get, enjoy life

2
[deleted]•

[deleted]

2
AFGiant•

Track down people with similar interests to you. Whatever you get enjoyment out of, someone else in your new area likely does too. Look for places you'd personally like to go (stores, concerts, tours, whatever you're into) and meet people. Start up conversation. Join groups or leagues. Look online for other common meetups involving your hobbies. With new friends, you'll feel acclimated soon enough. Still, keep in touch with your other friends back home via Skype and whatnot. You'll do fine. Best of luck!

1
conrick•

Take your Reddit account with you ! Ha !

1
MyNameIsBruce•

The same way one fights science...WITH WOOD!

1
fact_over_truth•

If you don't mind me asking.... Where are you moving? I've lived all over the country, maybe I can give you some cool spots and what to look out for.

In answer to your question, I'm not sure... I never really noticed homesickness. I felt quite liberated.

1
postsOP•

South Texas.

1
fact_over_truth•

If you're moving ANYWHERE near Corpus Christi, you're golden! Annnd I know Austin is a long shot... But, if you like live music thats the place to go.

1
lanismycousin•

get laid

1
d0m0kun•

Home (n.): Where you're getting laid

1
lanismycousin•

so i guess that you never got laid outside of home?

1
jgarfink•

I moved around 1000 miles from home in June. I did not know a single person here and I was completely not prepared for what was about to happen. So here are my suggestions:

  • Find a place to live that you will absolutely enjoy. If you pay a little extra per month for a better place, do it. There are very few things about being here that I like; my apartment is one of them. Also, if you can stand living with a roommate (or a few), that might not be a bad idea.
  • Keep your blinds open and let in lots of light. My first couple months, I had my blinds closed because it was summer and I didn't want excess heat to come through. I basically was living in a cave and my mood was affected by this.
  • Find a group of people you can hang out with. I'm still working on this - after six months, I have one sort-of friend. The only way I found him was by exploiting cultural connections, so if you have any (church, ethnicity, etc), use them. Join clubs if you can, take classes, etc.
  • Talk to your family as often as you need to. I was so concerned with making it seem like I was doing okay that I didn't call my parents as much as I should have and it sucked. I've called my mother on the phone crying before. It needed to be done. You might have to do that too.
  • Keep busy. Do some sort of hobby, maybe work a little overtime, etc.

Good luck. If you need someone to talk to, let me know. I know that some of these will be difficult if you're moving to a suburb or the country, but I'm sure there will be something there.

1
Cpart•

That's pretty leet

0
SpacemanSpiffOCF•

Simple, don't eat your house and you won't get sick

0
jayknow05•

Leet.

-1