thegambler

I came to the USA when I was 19 to play soccer in college, that was 17 years ago. Having spent a number of years going back and forth between the two countries I finally settled on a good job in the USA. Now, more than ever I am worn out with the US and long to return back to my roots. I cannot explain it but its just a feeling that you are always on the outside looking in. When I go home I instantly feel like me again. The fear I have of going home is work. I have a brilliant job in the US that pays well, I would have to give all that up. That fear is the stumbling block. I am just torn and was wondering if anyone else has felt this way or has dealt with this before.

Mummy in the foothills

I know how you feel about being yourself once you are home. I feel that too.
Maybe you could get some sort of certificate of training or degree in your area before moving back. P.E. teacher maybe?
Or train as one once you get back home. I'm sure it's be a breeze after coaching/training all these years.

cricket1again

Stepping outside your comfort bubble is the hardest part. Once you've done it though, you'll find more opportunities to give you what you need.
Ask yourself, if you don't move, how will you feel?

HighSpeedGrandma

Yep, there are many who feel like you and fear of not having a job or somewhere to live is keeping us away from our country of birth. The only thing I can say is, the longer you stay away and the older you get, the harder it is to go back and start again.
Only you can make the move. Good luck.
From another 'wanna go home' member of BE.

JohnZD

I moved away from the UK in 98 and have lived in a few different places around the world. I decided to come back and give it a shot. To be honest I obviously chose the wrong time to enter the UK as it feels to be very grey (not the weather). I am finding people to be very down and gloomy, jobs are very scarce and of course the weather is not great. If I were you I would wait for a year or so and come back to visit a couple more time this year then if it really what you think you want then do it.
Good luck

Bevm

Where are you, John?

I was there recently. The weather was good, the countryside beautiful, the birds singing, and people cheerful. I was in the SW, and the recession hasn't hit as hard there. I also wasn't looking for work.

Can you move somewhere else in the UK?

Bev

JohnZD

Hi Bev,

I was in the North West near to Preston, I also went to Somerset for a while but just was not what I remembered. I am not dissing the UK just think at this moment in time jobs are hard to find and people should just take that extra care and research before moving back. I do think the SW is lovely though.

cricket1again

Preston is mostly industrial so it looks grey and the people can be very dour because of the working class frame of mind 'this is as good as it gets' attitude that's still attached to certain areas. It's this attitude that often prevails and it can be a bit depressing and gloomy because it's so small. A bit like living permanently in a Coronation Street mentality.
Other parts of the country though have a different energy and attitude. England has these contrasts, it always has done so you need to be mindful of staying open minded when returning. The term' don't judge a book by it's cover' springs to mind.
It's funny, but we have someone from Preston in our current circle of friends. If he's not careful, he'll be sporting a bruise soon as he keeps telling me how 'stupid' I am for wanting to return to the UK. But I grew up in the Lake District then lived in other parts of Britain, always scenic and beautiful. I've concluded that there is nothing wrong with the UK. Miserable, small minded people are everywhere. As long as you keep looking outside the square, you can dodge most of them and meet similar like minds. As far as I'm concerned,unless it disappears off the map, nothing can change the England I'm going back to. Britains beauty and history is incomparable and while this alone won't put food on the table, neither will listening to the doom and gloom stories, which have always been a part of Britain regardless of whether there is a recession or not.

Dave_Was

I'm exactly the same way. I moved out to the US for work, have a good, well paid job. The industry that I work in, is quite specialised, but there are a lot of companies that I can work for in the US, but relatively few in the UK.

If I went back to the UK, I would have to accept a pay cut, understand that if the company I worked for, let me go it could be difficult to find new work in my field, etc.

I would love to go back and will at some point, however, in the current climate it's something that you need to be extra careful in.

Hand on heart, I feel like I'm treading water in the US, but I don't know what I would do if I went back home right now.

If you have your dual citizenship, I think things would be a lot easier. You could go and give it a try and if it didn't work out come back.

For my wife and it's still four years before we can even think about applying for citizenship.

Good luck.

Sandra1

Hi, I can readily identify with you. Although I have dual citizenship and have resided here for many, many years, I'm also planning to return to the UK in the near future. My immediate family are in Dorset and that is the deciding factor - along with medical care. Being divorced without children, I would rather go through the aging process with family and the NHS rather than stay here and possibly bankrupt myself with medical costs. The decision making process has been a very slow an evolutionery one. One in which you can look at the good, bad and ugly on both sides at leisure and come up with a measured decision.

penny farthing

Can you manage to get one year away- sabbatical- leave of absense- unpaid leave-that sort of thing where your employer would keep your job for you. Do you maybe have enough dosh saved to do a 'dry run' in UK?

This home sickness thing is overwhelming you..it is very powerful.

If you can do the year or 6 months then that may be the way to go -
I cannot imagine the despair of being unemployed in grey old UK with a tanking economy, it would take a lot of readjusting unless you have lots of family friends to shore you up.
and btw I read BBC online daily and I'm terrified of the news reports -
all kinds of horrors - abused kids, killings, unemployment, homeless ,debt.
was it always this bad ?

Mummy in the foothills

Don't believe everything you read online. Bad news sells well.
I'm sure there are bad things going on as there are everywhere in the world.
If I read the local news online for where we are, there's not a cat in hells chance I'd choose live here with my kids. But we are quite happy here and haven't seen any signs of violence and the schools aren't filled with gang members and drug dealers, which from the news you'd think they were.

dunroving

I think the BBC news is a disgrace these days ... too much emphasis on sensational news (with child abuse, rape, and violence at the top of the list) ... there was a branch of writing called misery lit that took off here a while back, and it seems the news is going the same way. Human misery is permanently flavour of the month.

There's rarely any depth to it either, all sound bite and no substance.

penny farthing

thanks to both -Yes I know bad news sells and I take it all with a grain of salt but it does nothing to firm up your intention to return- guess Ill give BBC a rest...
now where's my rose coloured specs!!!

fulwood

Cricket1, I consider Preston home and when I have said in past I may return to UK - couple of friends are like "are you bl--dy crazy'! They've not been in my shoes and don't know how lonely it has been for me these past 25 years here. I may move and may be big mistake but at least I tried. Hopefully it will work out.