It’s always a challenge to move to a new country. Always. You can be upbeat, excited, well-informed, and love the place you are about to move to… and still end up totally miserable.

Some expats are extremely well-adjusted and could live in Qatar till death, others are struggling with integrating.

Qatar is an interesting place with a lot of really fabulous experiences on offer. There are many people and minds at work trying to keep people busy, engaged, and happy (i.e. iloveqatar.net). Regardless, the more I speak to unhappy expats, the common denominator amongst them is that they feel they are missing out on life back home. It could be anything from a sibling that had a new child, a friend’s wedding, or being far from ailing elderly family members.

Expat blues may occur because instead of starting a new life in a new country, we have somehow just pressed pause on our lives back home and are eagerly waiting to return to them.

Some of the best ways to deal with expat blues:

1. Build yourself a new community within Qatar

2. Try out the amazing events on offer here (which are often free).

3. Step out of your comfort zone and experiment with new experiences i.e. desert camping.

4. Try taking different lessons, this can often lead to creating new friendships i.e. try an Arabic or Mandarin language class.

5. Don’t wait to return home, try to make Qatar your “home” while you’re here. Your perspective on things will often dictate how you feel.

Follow us on our social media channels: @ILQlive @ILQlive @ILoveQtr ILoveQatar