What is "Reverse Culture Shock"?

Will I get it?

You might!  "Reverse Culture Shock" (RCS) is essentially the same thing as culture shock - but you get RCS when you move back home. 

Culture shock when I move home?!  What?

Yeah!  When you move back home after a period overseas you will have a lot of idealized expectations about how it was, how you remembered it, how things worked so much better and how things will go.  And often things aren't exactly as you remembered.  You will, just like regular culture shock, have feelings of elation, disappointment, and even anger and depression.

Research says . . .

Some literature indicates that the more and better you adapted to your new country overseas, accepted and lived in that culture, then the greater your RCS will be when you return home.

When I go home

I have to admit, my home country is not my home anymore.  I feel a little odd there and the high speed, high stress life that my relatives and friends live holds little interest to me.  In fact, repels me a bit.

Not totally comfortable anywhere

There is an old saying (please send me the reference if you know from where!) that says basically - that once you have learned to live anywhere - that you don't feel totally at home anywhere.  I tend to agree with that.

Each Country

After you live in a variety of countries, each one leaves you just little more skilled at dealing with cultural and adjustment issues, and I think it all becomes easier and easier.

Don't worry about it - it is just another of life's challenges.