Expatriates Face Social Strain During Summer

Psychologists and journalists note that summer can be especially difficult for people living abroad. School closures and the departure of fellow expatriates leave many feeling that the host country has become strange again. Sidsel Byskov Hansen, a well‑being consultant for over 20 international schools, explains that “for people living abroad, where daily life already requires constant cultural adaptation, the temporary loss of familiar faces can make the host country feel strange and unexpected again.” She links the experience to the “Ulysses syndrome” described by psychiatrist Joseba Achotegui – chronic stress caused by repeated separations, losses and continual adaptation.

Laura Kennedy, a journalist who has lived in Limerick, London and Australia, describes expatriation as reshaping identity and says “one must reinvent oneself to become someone capable of living this new life in this new place – the circumstances demand it.” While summer can bring calm and solitude, many expatriates also grapple with a lingering sense of loss and the “ghost” of their former self, a feeling that remains difficult to express openly.