Why Expats Question Their Life Every Summer (and How to Use It)

Every summer, do you start quietly questioning your whole life abroad? Whether to stay or move home, your job, your relationship, the next chapter you can't quite picture yet.

You're not imagining it, and you're not the only one. As a life coach for expats, I watch this happen every July. There's a real reason the questions surface in summer, and once you see it, you can use the season instead of being ambushed by it.

Why summer makes you question your life abroad

Summer is made of space. Fewer deadlines, a slower pace, long days, more travel. Work and the people around you demand a little less. And if you're an expat, there's a good chance you're flying home to your people and your own culture for a few weeks.

All of that creates room, and room is what your busy expat life almost never gives you.

All year you've been on a fast train. You love the view, the trips, the friendships, the international life you built, but you're moving too fast to look up. Then summer slows the train down, and you finally ask: where is this even going? Do I like the destination?

3 reasons the questions surface in summer

1. The space lets the big questions in.

All year your head only has room for the short-term stuff. Summer clears it, and the questions you've been outrunning catch up with you.

“Wait… is this even the life I want?”

2. The emotions catch up too.

Most of us fill every gap so the harder feelings never get the floor. Both my parents have died, and in daily life I mostly don't feel it. But put me on a plane with some quiet, and I cry out of nowhere. The emotion was always there. It just needed the room.

“Why am I this emotional over something so small?”

3. Expat life literally changes in summer.

Postings shift, families move for the school year, and trips home make you wonder why you chose the harder life. The season is practically built to make you wobble.

What most expats get wrong about the restlessness

When the questions show up, most people do one of two things. They numb it with more busyness, or they wait for it to pass, telling themselves they'll deal with it once things calm down. Things rarely calm down on their own. And every summer you push it away, you hand the same question to yourself next year.

How to use the summer space: reflection questions for expats

You don't need a big decision by August. You need to use the one season that gives you room to hear yourself. Set aside a Friday afternoon or a quiet Sunday, on purpose, instead of overthinking at random. Then ask the real questions:

• If you couldn't fail, where would you be a year from now?

• What were you doing in the weeks you actually felt good this year?

• What's leaking your energy, and what's giving it back?

• What could you let go of, even something you like, to make room for more?

  
  

FAQ: feeling stuck abroad in summer

Why do I feel stuck abroad even when my life looks great?

Because the restlessness is usually emotional, not logical. When the summer pace slows, the questions and feelings you've been outrunning all year finally surface.

Can a life coach for expats help me figure out what I want?

Yes. Coaching gives you the structure and the outside perspective to turn that restlessness into a clear next chapter. That's the work inside my 1:1 coaching and The Co-Pilot.

Want a life coach for expats in your corner?

This comes from episode 115 of This Expat Life, “Why so many expats start to question their life choices in summer.” Watch the full episode on YouTube, then let's work together. Inside The Co-Pilot, my group program for high-functioning expats, we turn the summer wobble into real direction. Prefer 1:1? My private coaching is here for that too.

After you watch, DM me @amandamaxime and tell me which question hit hardest.

Have a wonderful summer, wherever in the world you are.