AF Education
Liam Carrigan 专属博客
如何处理思乡病：一个过来人的建议
Handling Homesickness: A Survivor’s Guide
首先，恭喜你！祝贺你被梦想中的美国/英国的大学录取！你终于进入到一个全新的令人兴奋的学术环境啦！包围着你的是刺激的学术辩论、新朋友、新家，一个全新的国度等着你去看、去发现和体验。
So, congratulations are in order, you’ve done it! You’ve been accepted into the American or British University of your dreams and you are off to pursue your studies in an exciting new environment surrounding by stimulating academic debate, new friends, a new home and a whole new country to see, explore and experience.
但一切并非都好，经过这几个月的冒险，你发现自己深深陷入一种不可动摇的忧郁当中。你不太明白当地朋友跟你说的话，你不理解很多当地的规则，上学成了一件苦差事，你开始渴望回到家乡那些懒洋洋的日子，还有你熟悉的朋友们、生活轨迹和熟悉的生活方式。
But yet all is not well, a few months into this adventure, you find yourself caught under a cloak of almost unshakeable melancholy. You don’t fully understand what your local friends are saying to you, many of the local rules and regulations don’t make sense, school has become a chore and overall you just find yourself longing for those lazy days back in your hometown, with familiar friends, familiar process and a familiar way of life.
是的，可怕的思乡病终于来临了。
Yes, the dreaded homesickness has finally kicked in.
有人称之为轻度抑郁，有人称之为文化休克，还有其他的，我不太清楚，人们可能也只是称之为懒惰吧。无论你如何定义它，思乡病确实是一种疾病，一种你不能忽略、并且需要在它严重影响你学习之前处理的状态。
Some people call it mild depression, some call it culture shock, and other, less-informed, people may just call it laziness. However you choose to define it, homesickness is exactly that, a sickness, a condition that cannot be ignored and needs to be dealt with before it starts to seriously impact on your studies.
有了这个想法，我们可以做什么呢？
With this in mind, what can we do about it?
这里有几个简单的步骤能帮助你战胜这种状态，并且使得它对你的学习和留学生活的影响最小化。
There are a number of simple steps you can take to combat this condition and minimize the effect it will have on your studies and your new life abroad.
今天在这里，我会列出几个方法。他们都来自我努力适应过的日本生活、彼时的香港生活，以及此时再次经历的日本生活。
So, here today, I will outline a few points. These are drawn from my own experience as I struggled to adapt to life in Japan, then Hong Kong and now Japan again.
但愿当你发现自己的留学之路很难走的时候，这些提示能够帮你摆脱困境，迅速回到你最好的状态吧！
Hopefully, if you are finding it tough going, these handy hints will help you break out of the rut and get you back to your best in no time at all!
1）跟你的家人和朋友保持定期的联系
1) Keep regular contact with family and friends.
我记得当我2006年刚刚搬到日本的时候，在那个时候，Skype还没有兴起，msn（你还记得它吗？）是当时最主要的通信方式，而当时许多社交媒体和通讯应用都仍然只是苹果研发团队的灵感而已。
I remember when I first moved to Tokyo back in 2006. At that time, Skype wasn’t really a thing, msn messenger (remember that??) was the primary form of communication and smart phones, with their numerous social media and communication apps were still a mere glint in the Apple R and D team’s eye.
在那些日子里，跟家人、朋友联系的确是一件难事。我非常想念我的家人，而且我跟他们唯一的联系就只是每周一次话费贵得离谱的长途电话。
In those days, it was tough. I really missed my family and the only way I could maintain contact with them was through a weekly phone call, which was ridiculously expensive for both of us.
今天无论如何，有着像Line、Whatsapp和微信以及各种数不胜数的应用，我们实在是没有理由不和我们的朋友和家庭保持定期的联系。如果你过了糟糕的一天，我也确实试过，只是给家人快速发一个短信或者只是和家乡的朋友或家人聊10分钟，都确实足以照亮我最黑暗的日子。挤出时间并且试着安排时间和家人或朋友联系。将这件事安排到你的日程当中，你会感觉更好。
Today however, with the likes of Line, Whatsapp, Weechat and numerous other such apps, there’s really no excuse for not keeping regular contact with friends and family while you are abroad. If you’re having a bad day, as I indeed still have sometimes, then even just a quick message or a 10 minute chat with friends and family back home can really brighten even the darkest of days. Make the time and try to schedule a regular call with family or friends. Keep to that schedule and you will all feel better for it.
2）花时间去探索你周遭的新环境
2) Take time to explore your new surroundings
许多大学城或者城市本身并不仅只有这个学术机构。你每个星期都可以腾出一些时间把书本丢到一边，出外猎奇。
There’s more to most university towns and cities than just the academic institution itself. So make some time each week to ditch the books, and get out and see the place.
我的一个最大的遗憾就是在我第一次从家里搬出来的时候，并没有花足够的时间真正地在我上学的地方探索一番。爱丁堡真的跟我的家乡格拉斯哥截然不同，尽管她只是距离格拉斯哥一个小时的车程。谢天谢地，当我搬去东京的时候我就吸取了这个教训，我充分地利用了每一个机会来认识了这个城市和这里的人们。
One of my biggest regrets about when I first moved away from home was not making enough time to really explore the culture and get to know the local people in the city where I studied. Edinburgh was radically different from my hometown of Glasgow, despite only being about an hour’s drive away. Thankfully, by the time I moved to Tokyo I had learned my lesson and I made sure to fully acquaint myself with the city and its people at every opportunity.
熟悉你周围的环境有三大好处。首先，如果你更了解这个城市，自然而然地，你在那里会感到更舒服和放松。
Getting to know your surroundings better has 3 primary benefits. Firstly, if you know a city better, then you will, naturally, come to feel more comfortable and relaxed there.
其次，这样的活动为你提供了一个出路，能让你远离学校、考试和学习的日常生活。
Secondly, such activities provide you with an outlet, away from school, exams and the grind of daily studies.
再者，引起乡愁的一大根源是你对各种不熟悉的不适。如果你挑战自己，去更丰富和有趣的地方，然后你就可随着时间的推移，更适应你周遭的环境和日常生活了。
Thirdly, one of the root causes of homesickness is being uncomfortable with the unfamiliar. If you challenge yourself to enter more diverse and interesting places, then you will, over time, become less averse to change in your regular surroundings and routine.
3）合理利用你周围的资源和人们
3) Utilize the resources and people around you
乡思、焦虑和轻度抑郁有时候伴随着它们的负面影响，会给你一个假象让你认为自己独自陷入困境当中。事实上，几乎所有的外国学生，或者是第一次离开家在外生活的学生都不同程度地经历过思乡病。你绝对不是孤独一人，你稍微做一些调查就会发现大部分学校和学院都会有支援团体、定期的一些社会活动甚至是一些咨询会议会帮助你脱离困境。如果那些活动看起来很让人费劲，那么你至少需要跟你的朋友谈谈，看看他们能不能给你一些建议。最重要的是不要孤立你自己，那样基本上会把情况变得更糟。
Homesickness, anxiety and the mild depressive disorders which sometimes accompany them can, in addition to their own debilitating effects, also give you the false impression that you are alone in your plight. The reality is, almost all foreign students, or those living away from home for the first time will experience homesickness to some degree. You are certainly not on your own, and with a bit of research you will find that most schools and colleges have support groups, regular social events and even counseling sessions to help you move beyond your problems. If that sounds like too much effort, then at least have a talk with a friend and see if they can give you some advice. The most important thing is not to isolate yourself as, ultimately, this will just make things worse.
出国留学毫无疑问是你一生中最好的一个决定，其实也没什么好怕的。
Studying abroad will, undoubtedly, be one of the best decisions you ever make, and it needn’t be scary either.
