As I write this, I am sitting at my desk, at 5pm, in my pajamas and eating vegetable broth. Not a glamorous moment like the ones you see on my instagram or in my other blog posts. I have been sick with a cold since Monday morning, but have probably not been taking care of myself as much as I should be (until today when my body screamed STAY IN BED PLEASE).

We all know the feeling “oh it’s just a cold, I can power through it”. This is especially difficult abroad because you feel like you need to take advantage of every spare moment and opportunity by doing something worthwhile. Today after class I ate lunch and slept for four hours. Not cute.

When we are sick, we know that we need rest or medicine, but we carry on because we know that we will feel better in a few days. But when talking about your mental health, it isn’t that easy.

Full disclosure, I have been going to therapy and taking medication for my mental health on and off for about six or seven years. (high school me would NEVER admit that- progress!!) I have a pretty good idea of what my limits are and how to control how I react to stressful situations. That being said, there is no way to completely rid myself of mental health issues. My brain chemistry doesn’t really care if I am in Vienna trying to have a life-altering experience.

Here are some thoughts I have gathered over my last five weeks:

1. Yes, you will still have bad days. And that’s okay! You are not “lesser than” because you cannot handle going out every single day. Part of studying abroad is pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, but you know when you have pushed yourself into not feeling safe.
2. You can safely experience new and foreign things! You do not have to travel to a different country every weekend, this can simply mean going by yourself to a library or cafe you have never been to before. You can make the most out of your time in small ways.
3. Practice self-care and self-awareness. Be honest with yourself and those around you. If you are dreading an activity, there is nothing that is forcing you to do it. Admittedly, this is what I have the most trouble with. It is easy for me to feel safer staying home, but I have gone to things I originally dreaded and had a great time. Just remember that you are not committed to anything and can leave the situation if things start to go badly.

Another tip I was told before I went abroad was to not be afraid to talk to someone. Whether that is your friend from home or school, someone on your program, a therapist abroad (many programs can arrange English-speaking counselling sessions!) or even your home therapist (I facetime mine), bottling up your feelings is never a healthy option. Reading study abroad blogs from other students has also helped me to just not feel so isolated. While your experience is unique to you, there are thousands of people who have been in similar situations and know what it’s like! Just because everyone else seems okay and like they are having the time of their lives, they are most likely experiencing some level of struggle.

The moral of the story is even if you think you can’t handle studying abroad, you can. Living abroad is a journey like no other and you are allowed to be stressed about it!! It’s crazy to go and live in another country for five months!!! But you will learn and grow as long as you remember to prioritize your mental and physical needs often. (And also, wash your bed sheets a couple times a month. That always helps.)

This was a short post, but I hope it brought comfort to some of you. Feel free to ask me any questions in the comments below or email me at chillteenie0125@gmail.com! Have a great rest of the week!