Anyone out there join peace corps?

Question

How was your transition back into American society?

Answer 1

Do a search - this question is asked almost every day here.

I didn't do peace corps (I'm not American) but I have worked overseas. Coming back back home was hard. There's a phenomenon called "re-entry shock" or "reverse culture shock" and it basically describes the emotional roller coaster you go on when you return to your own home country. Here's a link with a bit more info:

http://www.expatexpert.com/rr_coming_hom...  If you do a search for one of those terms, you'll get lots of information on it.

It's not easy coming home and in some ways it can be harder than going overseas. When you go to your new country, it's brand new and exciting (at first! read up on culture shock as well). But returning home can be a huge disappointment. Your adventure is over! Here are a few things that were an issue for me.

I lived in a country that had a very high military presence, which was difficult for me to deal with at first. But when I came home, the lack of those extra security precautions made me nervous to walk around alone, etc. I felt very safe in that country simply because there were SO many police and military officers around that I felt nothing bad would happen.

There was very little choice for me in terms of clothing, drug-store items (shampoo, etc), and other things like that. At first that was weird, but when I came home I really felt very overwhelmed by all the choice. I couldn't make up my mind on simple things like what brand of deodorant I wanted to buy or what colour tshirt. Also, because of the lack of choices there and the huge abundance of choices here, I felt depressed about how materialistic our society is. That's still something I feel every day since I've arrived home (2 years ago).

You feel separated from your friends. I lost some good friends when I came back because we simply have nothing in common anymore. They've gotten married and are having babies. I've just experienced something they never will and have changed dramatically, and am ready for my next adventure. You'll be a totally different person and a lot of your friends will have trouble adjusting to or accepting that fact.

When I first came back I was having such a hard time re-adjusting that I booked a flight out of my city ONE WEEK after I returned home. I just felt so overwhelmed and lost here. I moved to the other side of the country, hoping that a new city would be different enough to ease me back into my home country. It worked and 18 months later I was able to come back to my hometown again.

There are a lot of things I struggle with since coming back. You WILL be a different person after spending a year or two working in Peace Corps-type conditions. So it's tough, but I still recommend doing it. I feel that I gained a lot more than I lost. Make sure you read up on re-entry shock, though, so you're prepared (as much as you can be) for coming home. Good luck!