Self-Care Tips For Millennial Expats Living Abroad

Every year, thousands of Millennials pluck up the courage to move abroad and start afresh in a completely different country.

Millennials, who are currently aged 26 to 41, have not had the easiest ride:

First, the 2007-2008 global financial crisis, followed by years of recession.

Then housing prices have been rising every year, making it harder to get on the property ladder.

And now the recent cost of living crisis pushes people to reevaluate their life choices.

Millions of people are considering moving abroad (or at least living abroad for some time).

There’s an endless number of things to think about when making that decision:

Accommodation, work, taxes, etc.

Health is something that often gets forgotten but is super important.

Self-care tips for expats

Health is everything. The problem is, we realise the true value of health only when we lose it.

Among the chaos of organising a cross-country move, it’s easy to forget about your physical and mental well-being when you’ve got a long to-do list to prepare for your relocation.

Here are a few easy things you can do for yourself that make you feel good immediately:

1. Organise your health insurance before you relocate

This is a big one.

When relocating to a foreign country from the United Kingdom and you are a UK citizen, you’ll need to organise private health insurance for UK citizens. This insurance enables you to use local and national healthcare services while living abroad.

Even if you don’t have any chronic health problems and don’t take long-term medications, you will still need to arrange health insurance. Ideally, your insurance should be valid from the day you land in your new country.

You never know when you might fall ill or get injured while you’re living abroad, and your health insurance coverage enables you to get treatment or therapy if needed.

Your insurance provider will cover some or all of your medical bills and allows you to access higher-quality healthcare facilities.

Make sure to find an insurance plan that has the level of coverage that you need.

Speak directly with the insurance provider to learn more about the plans that they offer.

2. Build exercise into your routine

It’s easy to forget about exercise when you are out of your routine/comfort zone.

Exercise is extremely important for mental functioning and general well-being.

Find an exercise or activity that you enjoy. Simply walking for at least 30 minutes a day can be enough to maintain your physical health.

This will help you by boosting your mood, and managing stress.

Joining a workout club with expats or locals will not only enhance your physical fitness, it will also boost your sense of belonging. See if there’s a local sports team for you to join where you can participate in friendly matches with other sport-loving Millennials.

Exercise also significantly reduces your risk of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome, and even some forms of cancer.

3. Connect with the locals and other expats

We, humans, are social animals and need company. Interactions and community are good for our mental wellbeing.

It might be a bit scary to put yourself out there and meet new people, but it is important to meet people and build relationships.

In addition to connecting with locals and other expats, taking care of your language skills can also be beneficial. Learning the local language not only helps with day-to-day communication, but it can also improve your sense of belonging and cultural understanding. Consider taking an online language class to supplement your language learning and enhance your overall expat experience.

Include at least one social activity per day. It can be either chatting with a colleague or neighbour, joining a social event, or similar.

4. Get enough sleep

The effects of little sleep are detrimental to both our mental and physical health.

In addition, sleep allows us to function properly. A good night’s sleep helps with memory, focus, and decision-making.

Sleep is essential for all of us, and as an adult in your twenties, thirties, and forties, you need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep a night.

When you’re relocating and adjusting to your new life abroad, you might find that your sleep is affected. Perhaps you’re too busy to set aside enough time for sleep, or your mind is racing at night because you have so many things to do.

Try to set aside plenty of time for relaxation in the evenings so you can wind down physically and mentally before you get into bed.

You could practice deep breathing exercises, do yoga, read a book, or take a long hot bath.

5. Eat balanced diet

Everyone wants to eat better, but not many people have the time or skills to prepare healthy meals themselves.

When life gets busy, nutrition is usually what suffers first.

Balance means different things for different people. As someone, who loves sweets, I need to work on reducing sugar in my diet. For you, it may be reducing your meal sizes, etc.

If you’re too busy to cook regularly, read this article.

6. Stay hydrated

Another thing that is easy to neglect is drinking water.

It’s a simple task, but it’s often one of the first healthy habits that get forgotten about when your schedule gets busy.

Staying hydrated is vital for your health, as your body needs water to function properly. On average, we need around 8 glasses of water a day to stay properly hydrated, but you will need more than this if you exercise or live in a warm climate.

Finally,

Moving abroad empowers personal confidence, promotes openness to new ideas and experiences, and helps you develop your adaptability and problem-solving ability.

Life doesn’t always go to plan, but taking risks and being uncomfortable always rewards us with rare wisdom that cannot be taught or experienced second-hand.

You’ll expand the boundaries of what you believe to be possible because you will accomplish so many things you never dreamed of.

Of this, I’m sure.