Lacking resources when you live abroad

You turn up to your new country and you’re feeling over the moon because the world is your oyster and you can take on anything! At least that’s how you feel until you actually need something. And then you realise that you don’t have anything. Nor do you have anyone to ask. Rather than jumping for joy, you now wish that the world would just swallow you (and all of your problems) up forever!

No one warns you about the lack of resources before you move abroad.

Lacking people, not property

And by resources, I don’t just mean physical things that you can buy. I mean connections. There have been times when I’ve cried over basic tasks that I wouldn’t even think twice about if I were back home. Not knowing who to ask for help with certain things can be hard.

Even after being abroad for years, I still wish I could have my mum come over to help with the odd thing here and there. Instead, I get a video call consultation and then scramble around, asking everyone and anyone if they can help me get the job done.

Learning to ask for help

If moving abroad alone has taught me one thing, it’s learning to ask for help from people who aren’t family or life-long friends. We just can’t get everything done on our own, and I’ve found that people who live abroad understand the struggle of building up a life in an unfamiliar setting.

I often felt that I owed people who had helped me, which is a feeling I’m learning to shake off. After all, I know that I’d rather help someone and have them be happy because the job is done, rather than feel indebted to me for something that I simply did to be kind.