Expat Story: Maria accompanied her husband on an international assignment from Mexico to London

Maria had never lived outside of Mexico, so her first international move was both exciting and daunting at the same time. Leaving a full-time position in Marketing, Maria decided it was time to take a break from work and focus on other interests. After Maria had moved and settled in her new home, she met her coach who shared information about the community and the best ways to get connected.

Living in London was a major change for Maria, having lived in a small city in Mexico, and she found some immediate challenges with everyday routine tasks. Maria felt overwhelmed at first and described her feelings as an “emotional rollercoaster”. The coach explained how normal Maria’s feelings were and assured Maria that she would support her through this period of culture shock. Maria found it helpful to keep a diary over the next few weeks and discussed this in the frequent check-ins with her coach.

After several months, Maria was feeling confident about managing the change and was taking positive steps to build a new social network. Maria always had a passion for painting, but never had the time to pursue it while working full-time. She also established a new jogging routine, began learning Yoga, and soon met some new friends, including another Mexican expat. This was the little “touch of home” that she needed to help overcome her initial home-sickness. Eventually, Maria decided to obtain certification to teach English language skills and within six months had passed the TOEFL exam (Teaching of English as a Foreign Language).

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