Explore every episode of the podcast Nomadic Diaries: Mastering Global Transitions

This episode explores the layers of identity, privilege, and adaptation in expat experiences through a conversation with author Stephanie Cook. Topics range from cultural healing, maintaining authenticity, and the paradoxes of belonging, to practical and emotional strategies for global nomads and expat families.

Key Discussion Points

1. The Russian Dolls of Identity

Both speakers discuss how multiple cultural experiences accumulate like Russian nesting dolls.

Stephanie Cook emphasizes embracing every version of oneself: “My little 4-year-old German girl is still there, and so is the 25-year-old British girl. And it's all— they're all here” 00:00:57.

2. Pride, Privilege, and Sharing Roots

Acknowledgement of privilege in being allowed to celebrate one’s heritage, and the responsibility and difference this creates compared to immigrants from other backgrounds 00:01:56.

The American preference for celebrating heritage and cultural differences, demonstrated during national events 00:02:27.

3. Hidden Immigrants and Authenticity

Doreen Cumberford reflects on being a “hidden immigrant” and the challenge of feeling authentic in a new country while appearing to fit in 00:04:09.

4. Transitions Across States & Cultures
The soft landing in multicultural California contrasted with culture shock in Texas 00:06:28; the importance of local context in expat adaptation.

Community differences between international enclaves and more locally rooted environments 00:10:38.

5. Community Spirit and “Big-Hearted” Texas

Despite challenges, Stephanie Cook describes Texas and experiences there as marked by “big-heartedness” and deep community spirit that transcends differences 00:15:47.

6. The Third Culture Human

Exploration of identity labels: expat, immigrant, migrant, and the concept of being a “third culture human” as a broader, more inclusive term 00:25:55.

7. Open-mindedness & Self-care for Expats

Advice on adaptability: “The most important and also the simplest thing you need to be is open-minded… and make sure that you do say yes to all the things that happen. But make sure that you have time to process a move” 00:29:17.

Importance of creating balance between engaging and finding solitude and restoration 00:30:12.

8. Family & Mental Health Support

Discussion on the inadequacy of self-care expectations put on accompanying spouses and need for true mental health support for all family members during global moves 00:35:18.

9. Repatriation and the Future

Contemplating moves back to Europe—recognizing that life stages and global family contexts make plans fluid and non-linear 00:26:39.

10. Embracing Paradox & Wholeness

On the paradox of feeling more fragmented yet whole as a nomad: “You become more fragmented, and yet at the same time you become more whole” 00:20:42.

Resources & Mentions

• Book: Transcontinental Overload
  • Website: transcontinentaloverload.com
  • Instagram: Overloaded Steph

Memorable Quotes

• “Be prepared to deal with yourself.” 
• “I am the home.” 
• “Say yes to everything at first, but make sure that you have time to process a move.”

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Sarah Rapp: From How to Be Global to 1 Million Humans

Sarah Rapp is Director of Youth Advocacy and People at Junior Achievement Worldwide, and a nomad who has worked internationally for nearly a decade. Born in Germany, she moved abroad as an expat to Malta before building a fully nomadic life shaped by people and purpose rather than beaches. She previously hosted the podcast How to Be Global, closing it after 126 episodes once she felt she had "become global" herself, and has now launched a new movement, 1 Million Humans, drawing on her own experience of burnout and hard-won belonging.

What You'll Walk Away With

Doreen and Sarah trace her path from a shy, unbelonging childhood in Germany to a life spread across countries, friendships and time zones. Sarah speaks candidly about the real costs of nomadic living, from friendships and relationships to relentless jet lag, and why the trade-offs still feel worth it. The conversation turns to 1 Million Humans, born from watching high achievers run on empty, and why human skills matter more than ever in an AI-saturated world. Sarah also reflects on privilege, advocacy and a formative encounter with poverty in Accra, Ghana, that shaped how she shows up for others.

Connect with Sarah Rapp

Find Sarah on Instagram at @SarapGlobal or on YouTube for behind-the-scenes glimpses of her life. Join the movement at 1millionhumans.com, where the first thousand members become founding members of the Good Human Club.

Share this episode with someone who's standing at one of those thresholds — a new country, a return home, or simply a life that's asking them to become someone they haven't quite met yet.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Daniel Yalowitz 

Daniel Yalowitz psychologist, professor and intercultural mentor came to talk to Nomadic Diaries about his story as a cornerstone of the intercultural field for nearly four decades. Daniel brought to this episode the generosity and warmth that have made him a mentor to so many of us who have navigated life across cultures.

His favorite words all start with a C. Curiosity. Creativity. Collaboration. Communication. Collectivity. When your values and your work align this completely, you stop compartmentalising. That is what living an intercultural life feels like from the inside.

We explored the three-word question he carries into every training room and therapy session, Is there more?  It's an invitation to go deeper rather than simply moving on as we are beckoned to do nowadays.  We talked about debriefing as a daily practice for anyone moving through big transitions, and about what living across cultures teaches us about our complicated relationship with time.

And then there is the rencently published book. Co-edited with Sandy Fowler, Creating the Intercultural Field: Legacies from the Pioneers gathers twelve of the founding voices of interculturalism, all scholars now in their mid-eighties to mid-nineties, and asked them to reflect on how building this field shaped their lives. It is a record told by the people who built it, while they are still here to tell it.

It's not often that we get to hear the stories of how an entirely new social field is formed as told by the living authors.

Resources & Links:

Creating the Intercultural Field: Legacies from the Pioneers by Daniel Yalowitz and Sandy Fowler is available from Palgrave Macmillan, or on Amazon, or as a signed copy by contacting Daniel or Sandy directly. Find Daniel at danielyalowitz.com. 

https://www.amazon.com/Creating-Intercultural-Field-Legacies-Pioneers/dp/3032013690/

Subscribe to Nomadic Diaries wherever you get your podcasts.

Share this episode with someone who's standing at one of those thresholds. It could be either a new country, a return home, or simply a life that's asking them to become someone they haven't quite met yet. 

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Nina Aziz Justin has lived in five countries, worked across forty-seven of them, and spent the better part of five decades asking the question that so many of us quietly carry: where on earth do I actually belong? 

She is a serial entrepreneur, cultural chameleon, and self-described "rat in the lab" of her own life experiments, Nina has channelled all of that lived complexity into her memoir, The Home Within: A Nonlinear, Soulful Memoir About Belonging Across Cultures and Change. She sits down with us from France, which feels entirely appropriate for a woman who has never stayed in one room for too long.

What You'll Walk Away With
Nina has a gift for the kind of metaphor that lodges itself in your chest and stays there. Her image of becoming as a weaving, each country, each reinvention, each loss threaded permanently into the fabric of who you are, is one of the most beautiful ways I have ever heard repatriation and identity explained. 

"Once you have moved away," she tells us, "when you reopen that door, it goes into a different room. It's no longer that same room." If you've ever stood on a doorstep wondering why home doesn't feel like home anymore, this conversation will feel like someone finally put words to it.

We also talk about something Nina calls micro anchors, the small, portable rituals that calm the nervous system when everything around you is new and disorienting. For her it's rooibos tea. For a friend of hers who moved from Hong Kong to France, it was carrying her home scent in her suitcase. These are not quirks; they are wisdom. And Nina explains precisely why they work. 

We explore what it means to be a cultural chameleon, not as a charming party trick, but as a survival skill forged in a turbulent childhood, and how, beneath all the reinventions, there is always a through-line. The curious, zestful, truth-seeking person who was always going to find their way home to themselves.

Connect with Nina

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ninaazizjustin/

https://theresiliencementor.com

https://instagram.com/nina.aziz.justin

https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Home-Within-Soulful-Self-Belonging-Cultures/dp/9090405801/

If this conversation stirred something in you, and I'd wager it will, Nina's book is waiting for you on Amazon and at most online bookstores. Simply search The Home Within, Nina Aziz Justin.

Share this episode with someone who's standing at one of those thresholds — a new country, a return home, or simply a life that's asking them to become someone they haven't quite met yet. 

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Flor Bretón García was born in Venezuela and left her homeland at 22 — which means she's now lived outside her home country longer than she lived in it. Lawyer. Educator. Cross-cultural consultant. Mother of three adult TCKs. President of FIGT. And a woman who, after receiving her 598th job rejection, sat down on a Friday night and wrote an article that stopped LinkedIn in its tracks.

In this conversation, Flor and Doreen unpack what happens when globally complex women hit systems built for linear lives — and why that's not a talent problem. It's a design problem.

Flor opens with the moment she was quietly advised to take an accent-removal class, so as not to distract her students. It was the first time she felt the world asking her to become smaller — and she traces her journey from that moment of self-consciousness to her current view of her accent as an open door, an invitation for people to learn her story.

That story took a sharp turn on one particular Friday evening, when she sat down and really looked at those 598 rejection emails. What she noticed changed everything. Many had arrived within 30 minutes of her hitting "apply." Others cited a search for a better "cultural fit." No human being, she realized, was reading her resume at midnight on a Saturday. The systems were doing it for them — and those systems are built to reward one thing above all else: predictability. The very quality that globally complex women are not.

This is what Flor calls the great gap — the distance between what organizations say they want and how they actually hire. They talk about agility, resilience, adaptability, the ability to navigate ambiguity. But their applicant tracking systems, their recruiters, their hiring managers are all scanning for familiarity and linearity. A nonlinear resume looks like uncertainty. And uncertainty, to a system, looks like a no.

What makes this conversation so compelling is Flor's refusal to let that be the final word. She invites hiring managers to ask a different question entirely — not "why doesn't this resume fit our template?" but "what capabilities is this career showing me?" Because there is intention behind every pivot a global woman makes. The move that looks like confusion from the outside is almost always a decision made in the middle of uncertainty, following a vocation, pulling a common thread. For Flor, that thread runs through everything she's done as a lawyer, educator, and consultant: redesigning systems that truly honour humans with dignity.

She also gives us one of the episode's most memorable frameworks — the difference between a Forest Gump resume and a Michelangelo resume. Both are nonlinear. But one looks like things just happened to you, and the other reveals that everything was intentional, even when the path was uncertain. The difference, she says, is entirely in how you tell the story.

And telling the story, it turns out, is everything. Not listing countries. Not cataloguing credentials. But pulling the thread, naming the vocation, and being clear about what you want the listener to do with what you've shared. Flor's closing message is one worth sitting with: globally complex professionals have long been treated as outliers, as anomalies in the data. But the world is growing more complex by the day. We are not outliers anymore. We are data — and we are exactly what organizations need to thrive in the future.

Connect with Flor on LinkedIn as Flor Bretón García, where she posts weekly articles with practical tools for navigating global complexity.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Adrienne Belaire grew up on Aramco compounds in Saudi Arabia from first grade through high school, a world full of sunshine, small communities, and the particular freedom of a life lived between cultures. She is a wife, mother, potter, and artist who, after navigating her own sometimes turbulent repatriation to the United States, made a quietly remarkable decision: to go back again. She returned to Saudi Arabia as an adult gave birth to and has raised her three children there, giving them the same roots she had always missed. She is one of those rare people who has lived the TCK experience from both sides,  as a child, a daughter, a sibling and now as the parent holding the map.

What You'll Walk Away With

This conversation is for anyone who has ever felt like a marble thrown across a floor, feeling scattered, disconnected, not quite sure where they landed. Adrienne talks with extraordinary candor about the sudden closure of her compound in 1986, the grief of losing a community with no internet to hold it together, and what it felt like to fly into Denver knowing she was landing somewhere that was supposed to be home but felt nothing like it. 

What makes this episode particularly powerful is her hard-won perspective on what she wishes someone had told her then, that your kids need to know you are their safe place, especially when the world outside doesn't understand them yet. There is also a genuinely moving moment when she describes reading the Pollock TCK book for the first time as an adult and simply thinking: that is me. That is my sister. That is my brother. Recognition, it turns out, is its own special way a kind of homecoming.

A Gentle Nudge

Whether you are raising children overseas, or if you were once a child raised overseas this episode could be for you. Please share it with an expat parent who is navigating a transition right now, they will thank you for it.

Please share this podcast with someone, we work hard to produce content that makes a real difference.  In the catalog there are 30 episodes on coming home (the Re-Entry Series) and also on the topic of belonging,  (the Belonging Project).

Or browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

We would love to get to know you and what you might like to hear.  Here is a simple form, only three very short questions.   https://form.typeform.com/to/xV0rKTBD 

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

About Lisa Liang

Lisa Liang,  known formally as Elizabeth, with a Z - is an intercultural storytelling coach, solo performer, and TCK who grew up across Central America, Southeast Asia, and the United States.  She has spent decades helping globally mobile people do one of the hardest things there is: turn a life lived between worlds into a story that actually lands. She works with memoir writers, keynote speakers, and anyone who has ever felt that the people back home simply couldn't understand what their life abroad had been. Her warmth and precision in equal measure make her one of those rare guests you want to listen to twice.

What You'll Walk Away With

Lisa introduced me to a concept she calls story archaeology and I have been mulling this over since we recorded. The idea is that the emotional threads running through our expat lives are often traceable to a single moment in early childhood, sometimes as far back as age five. That moment of needing to feel seen, safe, or guided doesn't disappear, it simply resurfaces every time life gets big again. Like, say, when you move to a country where you don't speak the language and can't find a pharmacy.

We also got into the storytelling mistake that almost every returning expat makes, and it's one I am guilty of myself. Lisa's reframe is so simple it's almost embarrassing, but it works. And if you've ever had someone's eyes glaze over mid-story, you'll want this one in your back pocket.

There's a beautiful moment too where we talk about telling your story not just backward but forward, using hindsight to project foresight, and arriving, somehow, at present-moment insight. It's a idea that sits close to my heart, because it's one I've wrestled with in my own writing. 

In Unsettled, my book on repatriation, I explore how the stories we carry from our global lives can actually become a compass for what comes next, not just a record of where we've been. Lisa brings that same thinking to her storytelling workshops, and hearing her articulate it so clearly reminded me why this matters. For those of us cooking up the next chapter of our nomadic lives, this conversation hits differently.

Call to Action

If this episode stirred something in you, I'd love to know — share it with someone whose story deserves to be heard.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

About Pia 

Pia Mailhot-Leichter is a self-described "recovering nomad" who has lived in more places than most people visit, from Manhattan to Sri Lanka, London to France, and eventually dropping anchor in Copenhagen after decades of following the nomadic pull. Born to a French-Canadian mother and a New York City father, she grew up crossing cultures before she had words for it, and spent years searching for belonging before discovering it lived inside her all along. Today she's an author, creative coach, and founder of Kollective Studio (yes, the Danish spelling), where she helps visionary rebels and unconventional dreamers birth their boldest projects into the world. Find her at kollective-studio.com

What You'll Walk Away With This conversation is a love letter to everyone who has ever felt like a stranger in their own life and a gentle nudge to remember that you are the creative director of every scene. Pia shares the moment a therapist stopped her mid-"I'm moving to Paris" and offered her a genuinely radical idea: what if you learned how to stay? 

That one reframe changed everything. We talk about what she calls "extinction moments", those are the uncomfortable in-between spaces where an old version of you has to dissolve before something new can emerge, and why that void is actually the most fertile creative territory you'll ever stand in. 

We also explore why expats are already more creative than they give themselves credit for, and what to do when the honeymoon wears off and bureaucracy swallows the adventure whole. Pia's answer? Ask yourself how you'd creatively direct your next scene, as if you were a play or a movie director. Costume, soundtrack, mood, energy - all of it.

Your Next Scene Starts Now If this episode lit something up in you, please share it with a fellow nomad, a recovering expat, or anyone in the middle of their own extinction moment — they need to hear this one.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

About Daniela 

Daniela Draugelis didn't just study cultural intelligence, she lived it before she even had a name for it. Born in Argentina to a Lithuanian immigrant family (her father fled Europe as a war refugee), she grew up speaking Lithuanian at home, celebrating cultural traditions on weekends, and navigating between worlds long before anyone called it "code-switching." Twenty-plus years of globally mobile life across China, Indonesia, the US, and now Pakistan, she's a certified Cultural Intelligence facilitator who helps executives, diplomats, and globally mobile individuals not just survive the crossing — but genuinely thrive. Find her at culturalpathways.com

What You'll Walk Away With 

This is one of those conversations that gives you language for things you've always felt but couldn't quite name. Daniela walks us through the four pillars of Cultural Intelligence, including Drive, Knowledge, Strategy, and Action - and explains why having just one or two isn't enough. You can read every guidebook about your new country and still find yourself eating lunch alone in your car, wondering why nothing is clicking. We also get into the fascinating difference between tight and loose cultures, and what it costs us, both emotionally and practically, when we find ourselves leaping between them. And in true nomadic spirit, Daniela shares the moment she asked her Pakistani hostess for the "restroom" and was shown to a bedroom. Even after 20 years, culture has a way of keeping us beautifully humble!

Be Curious, Not Judgmental 

Daniela's parting wisdom comes straight from Ted Lasso , and it might be the most portable cultural intelligence tool you'll ever carry. 

Do you know someone navigating a new culture right now? This episode is for them. Share it, and let's keep the conversation going.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Dr. Joy Wiggins 

Meet Dr. Joy Wiggins, we chatted about Raising Kids to Boardroomsshe is a cultural agility expert, former professor, and single mum who packed up her life in Texas and moved to Lisbon, Portugal with her teenage daughter Ruby. She's spent decades living and working across cultures, from Germany to China to Jordan, she also now helps globally mobile women build careers and lives that don't fit neatly inside one country's borders.

What You'll Take Away:

• There's a world of difference between being culturally competent and culturally agile, one is going along to get along, the other is knowing yourself well enough to walk into any room, anywhere in the world, and read what's really happening beneath the surface
• Moving abroad as a single mum with a teenager is not for the faint-hearted, Joy shows us that when you take it one "next best step" at a time, and you keep the conversation honest with your kid, the adventure is absolutely worth the wobble
• The biggest blind spot Western women carry into cross-cultural spaces is mistaking their own confidence for competence.  Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do in a new culture is to stop talking, watch who speaks, and learn the unwritten rules before you try to rewrite them
• The women who thrive globally aren't the ones who hustle hardest — they're the ones who get strategic, build real solidarity with other women, and understand that sometimes opening a door just a crack is how you eventually walk through it fully

Connect with Dr. Joy Wiggins: 🌐 joywiggins.com 💼 LinkedIn: @DrJoyWiggins

If this episode stirred something in you, whether you're mid-move, mid-career, or mid-life or wondering what's coming next, please share it with a woman who needs to hear it today. And if you haven't already, subscribe to Nomadic Diaries wherever you listen. Your story belongs here.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

What if the hardest part of moving abroad isn't finding a house, but finding yourself? 

In this episode, Doreen Cumberford sits down with Vivian Chiona, founder of Expat Nest, an online counselling platform offering psychological support in nine languages to expats, repats, and global nomads worldwide.

Vivian brings warmth, wisdom, and 12 years of experience helping internationally mobile people navigate the emotional terrain that logistics can't fix. Together they explore the invisible side of expat life including the culture shock, identity shifts, and loneliness that can ambush even the most seasoned global citizen.

In this episode you'll discover:

• Why saying goodbye well is a skill — and why it matters for how you arrive
• The most common blind spots expats have when they think moving is "just logistics"
• Warning signs your mind and body are telling you to seek support
• How transgenerational patterns shape your expat experience (and why your grandparents' journey might be living in your bones)
• Why loneliness is really about disconnection — and practical ways to rebuild belonging
• The secret to a happy repatriation: building your global village back home
• Vivian's mantra for every expat: "This too shall pass"

About Vivian Chiona: 

Vivian is a psychologist, intercultural expert, and founder of Expat Nest offering e-counselling in nine languages including English, Greek, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, Chinese, and Arabic. Services cover individuals, teenagers, couples, and families. A free 15-minute consultation is available, and direct billing with many insurances is offered.

Connect with Vivian at:

📧 info@expatnest.com 

| 🌐 www.expatnest.com

Connect with Doreen at:

https://www.nomadicdiariespodcast.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/

https://doreencumberford.substack.com/publish/home

Book mentioned: It Didn't Start With You by Mark Wolynn

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

What does it really take to build a life across cultures? In this episode, intercultural trainer Kathy Ellis joins Doreen for an honest conversation about the messy, beautiful reality of cross-cultural living. From her small-town Midwest roots to seven countries, multiple languages, and decades helping others navigate global transitions, Kathy brings both personal experience and professional expertise to the table.

In this conversation:

The Cultural Iceberg: Beyond Tourist-Level Understanding
Kathy explains why cultural awareness is just the tip of the iceberg—the real work happens when you dive beneath the surface into ambiguity, unspoken rules, and deep cultural integration. We discuss what it takes to move from observer to participant in a new culture.

The Friendship Challenge: Building Real Connections Abroad
Making friends as an adult is hard. Making friends as a newcomer in a foreign country? Even harder. We explore the complexities and unexpected joys of building genuine friendships across cultures, the role of shared experiences, and why humor and emotional adaptability matter more than you think.

Repatriation: The Hardest Move You Never Saw Coming
Coming "home" after years abroad can be more disorienting than any international move. Kathy and Doreen dig into identity shifts, reverse culture shock, and practical strategies for reintegrating into a place that no longer feels quite like home—or maybe never did.

Your Survival Toolkit: What Actually Helps You Thrive
Forget generic advice. We share real-world strategies that work: leading with humor, staying genuinely curious, finding cultural "bridges" for connection, and maintaining positivity without toxic optimism. Doreen shares examples from her relocation coaching work that bring these concepts to life.

The Executive Friendship Gap: Success Doesn't Equal Connection
Even high-achieving professionals struggle to build meaningful relationships outside of work when they move internationally. We explore the subtle cultural and generational factors that make this harder than it should be, and what you can do about it.

Change vs. Transformation: Understanding the Deeper Shift
Living overseas isn't just about managing change—it's about transformation. We reflect on the difference between adapting to new circumstances and fundamentally evolving as a person through cross-cultural experience.

About Kathy Ellis:
 
Kathy holds a Master’s in Education, various Intercultural Communication and Language certifications, and serves on the board for the International Language Coaching Association (ILCA). Kathy is a Qualified Administrator in Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI). In addition to her educational endeavors, Kathy has published three poetry collections, available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Connect with Kathy:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathy-ellis-9b79191/

https://www.instagram.com/kat.ellis/

Connect with Doreen:
Nomadic Diaries podcast

https://www.nomadicdiariespodcast.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/

https://doreencumberford.substack.com/publish/home

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Today on Nomadic Diaries, I sat down with Peter Levitan, former Saatchi & Saatchi executive and serial entrepreneur, to talk about navigating international assignments, adapting to new cultures, and the challenges of returning home after working abroad. Peter shared invaluable insights on building trust, learning cultural nuances, and the importance of empathy in global business. 

Peter was one of the few Americans hand-picked to transfer to Saatchi's London office during its heyday. At that time HR was not involved, there was no orientation, no cultural training, no HR support. He figured it out through pub conversations, workplace friendships, and learning to read the room in a very different business culture. He built trust, adapted fast, and thrived.

Then he came home. And that's when things got complicated.

Despite gaining invaluable intercultural experience, Peter returned to find nobody particularly interested in what he'd learned. There was no debriefing, no attempt to leverage his insights, and certainly no acknowledgment of reverse culture shock. The skills he'd developed, cultural intelligence, adaptability, the ability to bridge offices and cultures became invisible.

In this conversation, Peter shares the realities of corporate international moves in the 1980s, the resilience required when you're navigating a new country with young children, and why returning expats often feel like their experience doesn't count. He also offers hard-won advice: be proactive about seeking support, manage your "brand" carefully when sharing your overseas stories, and don't assume your company will automatically value what you've gained.

This episode is essential listening for anyone who's lived abroad and struggled with reentry, or for companies wondering why their international assignments aren't delivering the ROI they expected.

If this episode resonates with you, please leave us a review. It helps other expats and returnees find these conversations.

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You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt farewell to the Nomadic Diaries podcast, Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks co-host reflect on a remarkable 10-month journey exploring the expansive topic of belonging. Together, they look back over 30 episodes, key guest moments, personal transformations, and the evolution of the conversations. The hosts revisit why belonging matters, share moving stories from the series, and discuss how the podcast impacted their own sense of community and connection. They also express gratitude to their team and listeners, offering wisdom and inspiration for anyone navigating questions of belonging in their own life.

Key Themes

• The universal human desire for belonging and its many expressions
• Notable guest moments: Stephen Toole’s international classroom, Marcia’s insights on somatics, and Cass Stewart’s perspective on belonging within a high-pressure team
• The distinction between “connection to” versus “connection with” people and places
• Intergenerational perspectives and generational shifts in discussing and experiencing belonging, especially regarding technology
• Paradoxes and challenges: belonging as both internal and external, and the necessity to continually reinvest in building community
• Personal takeaways and the courage it takes to both belong and create spaces for others to belong
• The podcast as a bridge builder and companion for listeners navigating changes, transitions, and questions of home

Notable Quotes

• “Belonging is not found, it’s formed.”  Megan Norton-Newbanks
• “True belonging never asks us to change who we are.” Brene Brown 
• “May you be at home wherever you find yourself today.” – Maya Angelou 

Special Thanks

Gratitude is given to the podcast’s guests, angel producer John Palmer, and sound engineer Pradeep for their invaluable contributions.

Final Thoughts

Listeners are encouraged to revisit the podcast library, connect with the stories that resonate, and continue the conversation about belonging. The hosts hint that while this is the final episode of the season, more may come in the future.

Farewell

The episode closes with a multilingual goodbye, expressing love, gratitude, and the hope that all will find belonging wherever their journeys take them.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Show Notes

Welcome back to Nomadic Diaries for part two of our conversation with Ruth Van Reken, the influential voice behind "Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds." Joined by Megan Norton-Newbanks and your host Doreen Cumberford, Ruth dives deep into cross-cultural identity, belonging, and generational perspectives.

Key Topics Discussed

• Navigating the "Where Are You From?" Question
  • Ruth shares practical ways globally mobile people can gracefully answer this challenging question.
• The Social Dynamics of Identity
  • Examining why traditional questions about origin can feel alienating, and how curiosity and cultural sensitivity can create bridges instead.
  • The importance of focusing on connection and stories rather than details.
• Generational Differences in Storytelling and Belonging
  • The panel reflects on how different age groups approach storytelling, sharing, and forming connections.
• Unique Strengths of Third Culture Kids (TCKs)
  • Ruth outlines new research highlighting cultural competency and linguistic skills as hidden superpowers of TCKs.
  • Adaptability, bridge-building, curiosity, and global enthusiasm as signature traits in careers and communities.
• Creating a Sense of Home and Belonging
  • Ruth reflects on cultivating belonging wherever she’s lived, emphasizing human connection and the joys of multicultural friendships.
• Advice for Parents Raising TCKs
  • Ruth offers actionable guidance: nurture family traditions, recognize each child's unique gifts, and always foster a sense of agency and choice.
  • The importance of honoring both shared humanity and individual uniqueness.
• Final Thoughts on Belonging
  • The episode closes with a focus on collective belonging, inspired by a quote from Mother Teresa.

Notable Quotes

• “You can make it a fun question.”  Ruth Van Reken
• “I am more interested in the connection than the details.” 
• “Our biggest challenge is not only belonging—but belonging to ourselves.” –Ruth Van Reken

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Episode Overview

In this enlightening episode of Nomadic Diaries, Doreen Cumberford and  Megan Norton-Newbanks welcome renowned author and expert Ruth Van Reken, whose work on third culture kids (TCKs) has impacted countless lives globally. The conversation centers on belonging, identity, and the often-complex emotional terrain of those who grow up between cultures.

What You'll Hear

1. Ruth’s Origin Story and Journey

• Ruth’s personal experience of being a third culture kid raised in Nigeria, drawing parallels with her father’s similar upbringing in Iran and her own children’s formative years in Liberia.
• The internal challenges faced despite a privileged, adventurous life—silent grief and lack of belonging—and how journaling led Ruth to uncover deeper truths about cross-cultural identity.

2. The Birth of the “Third Culture Kid” Concept

• Ruth’s first encounter with the term TCK and her collaboration with Dave Pollock, which resulted in the foundational book Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds.
• Insights into the writing process, the evolution of the TCK concept, and the ongoing development of the term "cross cultural kid" for inclusivity.

3. Normalizing the Experience of Displacement and Grief

• Why naming the experience is powerful, how sharing stories cultivates belonging and healing, and Ruth’s hope to normalize feelings of isolation and loneliness.
• The importance of making these concepts accessible to educators, counselors, and community leaders.

4. Belonging – Local and Global

• Discussion about belonging in various circles—family, local communities, and global networks.
• The difference between experiential and geographical belonging, and how third culture kids can feel at home in many places (and sometimes nowhere in particular).

5. Sowing Narratives Together

• The power and therapeutic effect of sharing our hidden stories—the secret shames and quiet pains that many TCKs carry.
• Transformative moments from Ruth’s own life, including her 80th birthday celebration, where her two worlds—local and global—beautifully converged.

6. Navigating Difficult Questions

• Tips and reflections on answering the classic expat question, "Where are you from?" with grace, and using it as a gateway to deeper connection instead of retreating behind simple answers.

Key Quotes

• "When we share the things that are secret in those places that we think nobody feels like this, that's when people put their hand up or come on the side and say, 'But I do.' I had no idea anybody else felt like this." Ruth Van Reken
• "Belonging is more than just the place. But you can find that contentment in where you are if you live it fully." Ruth Van Reken

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this engaging episode of Nomadic Diaries, Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks welcome Caz Stuart, an accomplished documentary filmmaker, to discuss the art of storytelling, belonging, and community - both on and off camera. Caz explores her nomadic journey from Europe to San Miguel, Mexico, weaving in her extensive career experiences, particularly in making hard-hitting documentaries on social issues for UK television.

The conversation spans topics from the dynamics of competitive pickleball in San Miguel to the emotional landscape of filmmaking - how empathy, resilience, and a sense of belonging take center stage in both telling and living remarkable stories. The trio also tackles how expat communities form, the challenges of integration, and the healing power of storytelling for both audiences and contributors.

Key Takeaways

• Filmmaking as a Path to Belonging:
  Caz shares that her love for languages and travel opened up an understanding that people everywhere share similar hopes and dreams, inspiring her to make documentaries that foster empathy and connection.
• Belonging in Challenging Contexts:
  Through stories from shows like Survivor, Caz describes how extreme circumstances and teamwork cultivate intense, sometimes fleeting, bonds—a microcosm for belonging.
• Resilience and Isolation:
  The conversation delves into how belonging is deeply tied to resilience, and how isolation and lack of community can deepen hardship, especially for nomads and expats.
• Duty of Care in Storytelling:
  Caz emphasizes the responsibility filmmakers hold toward their subjects, ensuring stories are told ethically and contributors are supported during and after filming.
• Expat Integration & Community in San Miguel:
  The group reflect on San Miguel’s unique blend of cultural vibrancy and welcoming atmosphere, while also discussing the importance of language, integration, and the mutual duty to foster genuine connection with local communities.
• Behind-the-Scenes Insights:
  From stressful production schedules to navigating heavy topics, Caz shares candid examples from her work, highlighting the importance of curiosity, compassion, and finding compelling characters.
• Advice to Listeners:
  Curiosity is key—embrace new cultures, ask questions, seek out stories, and don’t shut yourself off from learning opportunities. Belonging is built through exploration.

Memorable Quotes

• “Filmmaking for me was not something I thought about growing up…I just knew that I loved languages and I’m good at them, and so that took me traveling.”
• “People in general are good people…and so that made me think, I want to make films that help people understand that.”
• “If you have no belonging, you have to have a lot of resilience. Because belonging is the thing we crave.”
• “As filmmakers, we have a duty of care to make sure the experience is a good one, and follow up with the care afterwards as well.”
• “To be curious, not to shut down and go within your own little world, but to always look outwards and see what you can learn from other people.”

Further Discussion Points

• The evolution of San Miguel as a cultural hub and refuge for expats.
• The challenges for older expats and those who struggle with integration, especially due to language barriers.
• Ethical considerations in documentary filmmaking—balancing powerful storytelling and contributor well-being.
• How compressed, stressful environments can accelerate a sense of community or reveal character.
• The importance of storytelling as a healing practice for both tellers and listeners.

Resources Mentioned

• The British “Survivor” TV show (behind-the-scenes account)

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt episode of Nomadic Diaries, Doreen Cumberford opens up about the challenges and transformations of expat life, drawing from her own 15 years as an accompanying spouse in Saudi Arabia. She reads an excerpt from her book, "Life in the Camel Lane," diving into the core themes of home, identity, and the elusive sense of belonging for global nomads. Listeners are invited to reflect on adaptation, cultural transitions, grief, and the growth that comes from living liminally—caught between cultures and worlds.

Key Topics Covered

• Personal Expat Journey:
• Doreen Cumberford
• shares highlights from her memoir, detailing the realities of moving, adapting, and thriving in a completely different cultural environment.
• Anatomy of Adventure: Each expat experience is unique, demanding presence, adaptation, and a willingness to let go of familiar ways.
• Liminal Living: The challenge and beauty of living life on the threshold—balancing cultures, mindsets, and identities.
• Growth & Adaptation: How expatriates, especially Western women in Saudi Arabia, redefined themselves and built new support systems.
• The Role of Grief: Exploring the emotional cost of saying goodbye to friends, places, and former selves, and how these losses fuel future adventures.
• Re-entry and Repatriation: The struggle and skills involved in returning ‘home’ after deep immersion in another culture.
• Transformation through Mobility: Embracing the changes and expanded perspectives that come from global living.

Memorable Quotes

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this episode, Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks sit down with Sa-Eun Park, also known as San Shine, a belonging coach and spiritual entrepreneur based in Incheon, Korea. San shares her powerful story of growing up cross-culturally—moving from Korea to Saudi Arabia, then Austria, and later, the U.S.—and how these experiences shaped her journey with belonging, identity, and self-acceptance.

Key Topics & Takeaways

• The Wound of Uprootedness:
  San discusses the impact of being separated from her family at a young age and growing up across multiple cultures, and how this led to a lifelong search for belonging.
• Inner Boardroom Method:
  San introduces her unique approach to self-acceptance by creating an "inner boardroom," inviting listeners to listen compassionately to the many voices within themselves shaped by cross-cultural experiences.
• Belonging as a Superpower:
  The conversation explores the idea that the ability to hold multiple cultural identities is not just a challenge, but a superpower for empathy and connection.
• Authenticity and Wholeness:
  How embracing all parts of ourselves, even the conflicted or fragmented ones, leads to a fuller sense of authenticity and belonging.
• The Human Kintsugi:
  San is developing a new framework—“The Human Kintsugi”—inspired by the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery with gold. It’s about turning life’s fractures into sources of beauty and strength.
• Senses and Belonging:
  The importance of using our senses, especially intuition, to recognize belonging and polarization in spaces we inhabit.
• Community in a Changing World:
  A discussion on how the meaning of community is shifting with technology, and why self-belonging is foundational for creating connections with others.

Memorable Quotes

• “Those voices are there to guide you to the wholeness in you.” – San Shine
• “Belonging is about returning to yourself and remembering who you already are.”

Practical Tips

• Practice the Inner Boardroom:
  Sit with your different identities and listen to each one with compassion, as you would to children with different needs.
• Create Your Own Healing Rituals:
  Physical objects—like a heart with country flags—can help visually acknowledge and integrate all the cultures and experiences in your life.
• Explore Playlists:
  Curate music that resonates with your sense of belonging, or helps you connect with different versions of yourself.

Connect with Today’s Guest:

Founder and CEO of Octopus and Stitch Consulting

• IG - @octopusandstitch
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/sanshine/

Resources Mentioned

• The concept of “Human Kintsugi”
• Megan Norton-Newbanks’ book: Belonging Across Borders
• Repatriation Playlist (referenced in the episode; available in show notes)

Thank you for joining us on Nomadic Diaries! If this episode resonated with you, share your thoughts or leave us a review. Stay tuned for more conversations on belonging, identity, and the global nomad experience.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt episode, Doreen and Megan sit down with Dr. Jemina Watstein, an internationally experienced visual art educator who specializes in working with third culture kids (TCKs) and international families. Together, they explore the deep connection between art, identity, healing, and belonging - especially for people who’ve lived globally mobile lives.

What You’ll Hear:

• Jemina’s Background:
  Jamina shares her journey as a visual art educator over two decades, teaching in the US, Germany, and Thailand, and her academic path from a Master’s in Fine Art Photography to a PhD in International Educational Leadership.
• Art as Inquiry & Healing:
  She dives into what “inquiry-based art” means and gives practical classroom examples, explaining how open-ended questions can help kids - especially TCKs - explore and express where they come from.
• Universality & Differences in Children’s Art:
  Jemina discusses universal stages of artistic development, how art transcends culture, and what influences personal expression as children grow up in varied educational systems (IB, American, etc.).
• Avoiding Stereotypes and Cultural Appropriation in Art:
  The group examines how to teach cultural art forms with respect and depth, rather than relying on stereotypes, and emphasizes the importance of context and personal connection.
• Art, Family, and Belonging:
  Insightful tips for parents to use art as a way to help their children process change, loss, and belonging—whether after a move or while they’re adapting to a new environment.
• Travel-Friendly Art Supplies:
  Practical advice on traveling with art materials for families on the move—including the joy and portability of fiber arts and even something simple like a beloved pen or marker.

Key Takeaways

• Inquiry-led art empowers both children and adults to understand and express their identities.
• Art fosters belonging—both individually and collectively—especially for those crossing cultures.
• Parents and educators can support healing and adjustment through creative prompts and open-ended exploration.
• Bringing even compact art supplies or starting collaborative art practices can help root a sense of self and connection, no matter where you are.

Resources Mentioned

• TCK Art Education Website – Jemina’s site with research and contact info
• Jemina Watson Art – Jemina’s portfolio and works
• Book: “Slurping Stoop” (for art prompt inspiration)

Connect With Dr. Jemina 

https://tcksarteducation.weebly.com

Jemina Watson Art

Final Thoughts

Explore art as a safe space for inquiry and connection, wherever you are in the world. Don’t underestimate the power of making - and gifting - something by hand as a path to deeper human belonging.

Thanks for listening to Nomadic Diaries! If you enjoyed this episode, share it with someone in your global community and let us know how art has helped you find your sense of home.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt and insightful episode, hosts Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks welcome Stephen Toole for a rich conversation about the challenges and triumphs surrounding belonging and transition for Third Culture Kids (TCKs) and their families. Stephen draws from his decades of teaching and counseling experience across the globe, sharing practical advice and personal anecdotes about fostering community, supporting children and parents through transition, and the growing focus on well-being in international schools.

Key Discussion Topics

1. Challenges of Belonging for TCKs

• Increasing diversity in international schools, with more local students mixing with expats.

2. Inclusive Practices in International Schools

• The shift away from “English only” policies and embracing translanguaging strategies.
• The importance of validating and integrating students’ home cultures and languages in the classroom.
• Offering a variety of extracurricular activities to help students find their community.

3. Approaches to Supporting New Students

• Allowing space and time (a month or more) for new arrivals to settle before deep check-ins.

4. Community Building Beyond the Classroom

• Roles of parents, teachers, and staff in fostering a sense of belonging for the whole family.
• School events like welcome barbecues, international days, and cultural festivals as bridges for integration.

5. Advice for Parents Navigating Transition

• Transition is difficult—normalize sadness, frustration, and “not getting it right” at first.
• Don’t dismiss your child’s (or your own) grief; making space for discomfort is important.
• When challenges persist, reach out and communicate with counselors and trusted staff; don’t try to handle it alone.

6. Self-Care for Educators and Counselors

• The importance of having personal rituals and support networks (e.g., family time, walking pets, supportive colleagues).
• Creating safe, welcoming office spaces for students to retreat to when they need a break.

Memorable Quotes

• “Transition is difficult and it’s okay to cry. You’re not going to get it right the first time, and that’s also okay.”  Stephen Toole
• “Allowing them to speak about where they’ve come from is just as important as helping them move forward.” —Stephen Toole

Resources & Contact

• Connect with Stephen Toole: He welcomes outreach via LinkedIn for resource sharing and conversation about TCK transition and school support.
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-toole-m-ed/
• Recommended Books/Practitioners Mentioned:
  • Doug Ota  “Safe Passage” (on transition care)
  • Ruth Van Reken  on TCK identity, transition, and support

Connect with Us:

• Subscribe for more stories and insights from global nomads and experts on the topic of Belonging.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt solo episode, Megan Norton-Newbanks pulls back the curtain on her new book, Letters Now Sent, a collection of letters from over 90 contributors who have experienced life as expats, nomads, and third culture kids (TCKs). Inspired by Ruth Van Ryken's memoir, Letters Never Sent, the project explores themes of belonging, vulnerability, and the emotional tapestry of cross-cultural living.

Key Themes & Highlights

• Origins of the Project:
  Megan Norton-Newbanks was inspired by Ruth Van Ryken’s letter-form memoir and wondered how deeply personal reflections from those living cross-culturally could create a shared archive 
• Emotional Responses to Letter Writing:
  Contributors reported tears, laughter, and catharsis as they revisited formative memories. Letters range from humorous moments to deep expressions of grief and gratitude 
• Who Are the Letters For?
  Letters addressed parents, grandparents, children, mentors (including Ruth Van Ryken), and younger selves—showing the diverse impact of globally mobile lives (
• Standout Letters:
  • Chris O’Shaughnessy’s letter to his childhood friend highlights empathy and its lasting effects on cross-cultural connection 
  • Susie Brown, a U.S. Foreign Service mom, writes to her sons about the real challenges and closeness that come from their “vagabond life” (
• What is Belonging?
  Megan Norton-Newbanks concludes: belonging isn’t about fitting in, but being seen—especially “in the mess” of global mobility (00:07:02–00:07:34).
• Letters as Emotional Yarn:
  These aren't tidy stories, but threads handed to the listener—the reality of living between cultures (00:07:18–00:07:34).
• Shared Experience:
  Despite chaos and change, the book reassures listeners that they’re not alone in their questions and feelings. It’s “messy, lovely, layered, and deeply human” (00:09:24–00:09:31).

Memorable Quotes

• “Belonging isn’t about fitting in, it’s about being seen. Even in the mess.”
• “Sometimes being a part of someone else's story is the most sacred kind of belonging there is.”

Call to Action

Share the episode or the Belonging Project series with expats, nomads, TCKs, or anyone seeking to feel seen in their globally mobile journeys.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this episode, Doreen and Megan dive into the theme of Belonging with Tayo Rockson, whose life as a global citizen, diplomat’s son, writer, and basketball lover has uniquely shaped his perspective on identity, inclusion, and community. Together, they explore how moving across cultures influences our understanding of self, the growing crisis of belonging in a polarized, fast-paced world, and practical tools for cultivating more inclusive communities.

Key Topics & Takeaways:

• Tayo’s Global Journey:
  • Raised in five countries across four continents by age 17.
  • Navigating identity as a Nigerian living abroad: Code-switching, language barriers, and the pressure to “fit in”
  • The concept of "lily pad thinking" - that is growth through incremental changes rather than binary leaps
• Belonging in Today’s World:
  • We’re experiencing a “crisis of community, identity, and values.”
  • Binary (either/or) thinking and social media are fueling division and reducing our opportunities for true connection.
  • We need to slow down, reflect, and get comfortable with nuance, discomfort, and messiness.
• Moving from Head to Heart:
  • Practicing basic self-inquiry—What am I feeling? Why? How will I respond?
  • Importance of understanding personal biases, values, and triggers.
  • Ownership over our roles, both as those affected by bias and as people who may perpetuate it unconsciously.
• Authenticity & Inclusivity:
  • Authenticity starts with asking “Who do I want to show up as?”
  • The power of stating your needs and values, even when it’s uncomfortable.
  • Perfectionism and “the invisibility cloak”—how hiding our messiness suppresses humanity and connection.
• For Leaders:
  • “Don’t be afraid to be human.”
  • Admitting mistakes and modeling vulnerability fosters psychological safety and real team connection.
  • Perfection can be oppressive—process and progress matter.
• Lightning Round Highlights:
  • Synonyms for belonging: Safety, home, appreciation, understanding.
  • Language Tayo would learn: Igbo (Nigerian tribal language).
  • Dream destination: Singapore.
• Tayo’s Motto:
  • “Use your difference to make a difference.”
  • Embrace uniqueness as a superpower. Start with similarity if difference feels challenging.

Recommended Resources:

• Use Your Difference to Make a Difference – Tayo’s Book
• As Told By Nomads – Tayo’s Podcast Archive
• Rethinking by Adam Grant (book reference)
• Paradise Found (film) – For lighter reflections on difference and belonging

Connect with Tayo:

• Website & Socials: tyrockson.com | @tyrockson everywhere

Closing Quote:

Support the show

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this delightful “Belonging Bite” mini-episode, hosts Doreen and Megan dive into the profound connection between food and belonging. From childhood comfort foods to international culinary adventures, they explore how what we eat is never just about taste, but deeply tied to our sense of home, community, and personal story.

Key Topics Covered:

• Personal Food Memories:
  Megan shares her love for afternoon tea—a ritual that grounds her and transcends borders. Doreen reminisces about the comfort of udon noodles on a rainy day in Kyoto, and how learning to make rice helped ease transitions in different countries.
• Staples of Belonging:
  Doreen highlights rice as a cross-cultural staple, while Megan reflects on her mom’s grilled cheese sandwiches as a comforting family tradition.
• Food and Community:
  The hosts discuss how food anchors family and community gatherings, fostering connection beyond words. Doreen mentions feeling most at home in gatherings featuring a mix of cuisines that bring together diverse cultures.
• Out of Place or Welcome:
  Both hosts reflect on moments of feeling out of place or accepted due to the foods they brought to international settings—Megan notes her anxiety as a TCK (Third Culture Kid) at school lunch, and Doreen recalls cultural sensitivity around Ramadan in Saudi Arabia.
• Cultural Insights:
  The episode touches on the role of food in cross-cultural respect and community—like the breaking of fast in Ramadan, tea rituals in Bedouin tents, and TCK reunions where sharing tea is an act of collective memory.
• Invitation to Listeners:
  Megan encourages listeners to invite someone for tea, coffee, or a meal, highlighting the lost art of home hospitality as a powerful act of welcoming and community-building.
• Favorite Quote:
  Doreen closes with a favorite Anthony Bourdain quote:
  “Food is everything we are. It's an extension of our nationalistic feelings, our ethnic feelings, our personal feelings, our provinces, our tribes and your grandma.”

Takeaways:

• Food is a powerful trigger for memories, emotions, and a sense of belonging.
• Sharing meals—no matter how small—can foster deep connections across cultures.
• Hospitality is as simple as a cup of tea and as profound as a feast across divides.

Calls to Action:

• Invite someone for tea or a meal this week—rekindle the lost art of welcoming people into your home.

Connect with Nomadic Diaries:

Tune in for more "Belonging Bites" as Doreen and Megan continue to explore the everyday moments and meaningful practices that help us feel at home, wherever we may be.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this insightful episode, Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks chat with Dr. Helen Fagan about the nomadic spirit, the challenging journey of belonging, and the importance of self-awareness for meaningful inclusion. Dr. Fagan shares her childhood experiences in Iran, her identity as a descendant of Persian Bakhtiari nomads, and how moving across countries and cultures shaped her worldview.

The group discusses the internal and external facets of belonging - from the hard “homework” of self-reflection and letting go of limiting beliefs, to the practical work of including and welcoming others. Dr. Fagan describes the Intercultural Development Inventory, which helps people understand their approach to cultural differences, and highlights why most people remain in a mindset of minimization—focusing on similarities while struggling to engage with differences.

Through open conversation and vulnerability, Dr. Fagan illuminates the struggles of cultural dissonance, TCK (third culture kid) experiences, and the paradox of being “interested and interesting.” The conversation closes with Dr. Fagan’s personal reflections on family in Iran, the challenges of global unrest, and the importance of building belonging both within ourselves and our communities.

Key Topics Discussed

• Nomadic Heritage: The Bakhtiari legacy; how a journeying spirit manifests both in moving and deep engagement with new places.
• Third Culture Kid Identity: Navigating cultural dissonance, frequent goodbyes, and the search for belonging.
• Belonging as Inner Work: The necessity of self-reflection, understanding one's core values and past experiences, and releasing old beliefs.
• Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI): An assessment tool that uncovers how individuals perceive and respond to cultural differences, often revealing the gap between self-perception and reality.
• Internal vs. External Belonging: Balancing personal development with actions that foster inclusion and belonging for others.
• Emotional Intelligence and Leadership: The intersection of neuroscience, emotional intelligence, culture, and leadership in promoting inclusive communities.
• Handling Global Hardship: Coping with uncertainty and trauma when loved ones are in crisis, and turning to trusted personal strategies and support systems.
• Community and Connection: Building bridges by listening deeply, sharing stories, and fostering both individual and collective belonging.

Resources & Mentions

• Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI)
• Dr. Helen Fagan’s books & leadership training
• Brené Brown on deep listening & belonging

Connect with the Guests

• Dr. Helen Fagan: 
• http://www.linkedin.com/in/drhelenfagan
• http://www.facebook.com/drhelenfagan
• http://www.linkedin.com/in/drhelenfagan

Thank you for joining Nomadic Diaries! For more episodes and resources, follow us wherever you get your podcasts.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

This episode explores the deep connections between movement, body awareness, identity, and belonging, especially as experienced by people who navigate multiple cultures. The conversation dives into Marcia Bonato Warren's unique approach to Embodied Code-Switching® and the role of somatic awareness in feeling at home within our bodies across shifting cultural contexts.

Key Topics Discussed:

• What is Somatic Awareness?
  • Originates from the Greek word for “body” (soma).
  • Goes beyond physical presence—encompasses bodily signals, wisdom, five senses, and cultural body norms.
  • Importance of asking: “What have my cultures told me about my body?” and recognizing how societal norms affect our sense of self.
• Belonging and the Body
  • The sensory cues that signal belonging or otherness, from environmental context to body types reflected around us.
  • Somatic experiences of cultural fit and difference, such as feeling physically at ease or vigilant in certain environments.
• Embodied Code Switching & The SIA Loop
  • SIA Loop: Sensation → Interpretation → Action. A tool for attuning to both internal body messages and cross-cultural cues, slowing down reactions, and choosing responses intentionally.
  • The cross-cultural transition is often first detected in the body, not the mind.
  • Examples include changing posture, tone, or movement in response to different cultural expectations (e.g., "shrinking" or shifting vocal inflection in Tokyo).
• The Power of Mirroring and Interpersonal Synchrony
  • Mirroring (matching movement, posture, or inflection) naturally helps connect with others and foster belonging - as long as it's authentic, not imitation.
  • Shared rhythms (like dance, group chants, celebrations) create community and signal inclusion even without shared language.
• Memory, Longing, and Grief in the Globally Mobile Life
  • Bodily memories connect us to places and cultures left behind—there’s always a sense of longing (“saudade”) for experiences that cannot fully accompany us home.
  • Creating rituals or writing can help honor these connections and process grief.
• Advice for Global Nomads and Culturally Fluid Individuals
  • You have permission to own your unique, multifaceted identity.
  • Being able to cross cultures with awareness is a superpower—it enhances empathy, flexibility, and compassion.
  • Allow yourself time to know both your hosts and yourself; notice, listen, and include your body in this ongoing conversation.
• “Home is in my body now, because this is what’s taken me to all those places. And I still have me.”
• “There’s always a part of you that can’t come with you to the next place, but your body has a memory of those places, and because of that, it stays connected.”
• “Folks that move in between cultures and with different cultures, with conscious awareness... it’s a superpower. And I don’t say that lightly.”

Resources

• Book: Movement and Identity: Multiculturalism, Somatic Awareness and Embodied Code Switching
• Where to find Marcia Bonasso Warren: 
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcia-bonato-warren/
• https://www.youtube.com/@MarciaBonatoWarren
• https://www.facebook.com/MarciaBonatoWarren

Connect With Us

If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe to Nomadic Diaries for more conversations at the intersection of culture, belonging, and identity. Share your own experiences of embodied belonging with us on social media or through our site!

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt and insightful episode, host Doreen Cumberford and co-host Megan Norton are joined by Erin Meyer-Cherneux —author, cultural anthropologist, and visual artist —for  a rich discussion about belonging, transnational identities, and the beauty of multicultural living.

Erin shares her journey from a small town in Texas to making a home in vibrant Brussels, raising four bilingual and multicultural children, and finding inspiration and connection in places like Normandy. She discusses the unique challenges and joys of building community in internationally transient environments and distills wisdom from her own life, including her experiences as an author and her love for art and long-distance swimming.

Together, they explore the importance of belonging—not just to a place, but to oneself and to humanity as a whole. The conversation covers everything from the meaning behind painting walls blue, to modeling connection for children, grieving friendships in expat circles, and drawing life lessons from World War II history.

Key Topics Covered

• Erin’s journey: From Texas to Belgium and finding both love and a sense of home
• Raising multicultural, multilingual children and navigating family identity
• The practice and philosophy of belonging in global, transient communities
• How Erin’s book, D Day Lessons for Today: How to Create Your Future History, draws life lessons from history for facing personal challenges
• The importance of intuition, self-knowledge, and “belonging to oneself”
• Initiatives like open water swimming across continents and art as transformative practice
• The resilience, adaptability, and richness found in the expat experience
• Cultivating curiosity, empathy, and connection across cultures
• How artifacts, traditions, and physical spaces (like blue-painted rooms and rugs) can foster a sense of home

Memorable Quotes

• “Brussels is my heartbeat and Normandy is my soul sigh.” – Erin Meyer Charnu
• “Belonging means belonging to yourself first—when I feel least like I belong, that’s when I’m not paying enough attention to myself.” – Erin Meyer Charnu
• “You can pick and choose the best of the different worlds that you live in.” – Erin Meyer Charnu
• “We all belong to the human race—and that diversity of expression is what makes the world so rich and colorful and wonderful.” – Erin Meyer Charnu
• “When you connect with someone, you realize you’re both human and have similar desires, even if they’re expressed differently.” – Erin Meyer Charnu

Further Resources

• Erin’s Book: D Day Lessons for Today: How to Create Your Future History
• Education First (EF) D-Day Anniversary Commemorative Exhibit
• The Belonging Project (hosted by Megan Norton)

Connect With Erin

• Erin Meyer-Cherneux: Author, artist, coach, and cultural anthropologist based in Brussels and Normandy

Thank you for listening to Nomadic Diaries!
If this episode resonated with you, don’t forget to subscribe and share your favorite moments on social media. For more stories and resources on global living and finding community wherever you are, follow us or reach out via our website.

Sign-off:
Masalama, sayonara, and hasta luego

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Today's Belonging Project bite is a reading from Life in the Camel Lane: Embrace Your Adventure which relates to the topic of experiencing a clear sense of belonging.

We hope you are enjoying the Belonging Project.  

https://www.nomadicdiariespodcast.com/

https://www.amazon.com/Life-Camel-Lane-Embrace-Adventure/dp/0578607352

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartwarming episode of Nomadic Diaries, hosts Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks welcome Hiroko Bell, a Japanese adult third culture kid (ATCK) and passionate advocate for cross-cultural families. Hiroko shares her remarkable geographical journey, from Japan to the US, England, and back again, before settling in New York City and embracing her multi-layered identity.

Key Topics & Highlights

Belonging to New York City

• Hiroko reflects on finding home not in a physical location, but among family and community—a concept captured in her song “I Am Me.”
• Japanese TCKs and 'Kikokushijo'
• Unique Japanese term ‘Kikokushijo’ and its evolution: from describing children struggling to reintegrate after living abroad, to being viewed as global assets.
• Educational and emotional challenges for returnees, especially regarding language tracks and stereotypes.
• Importance of translating TCK resources and raising awareness in Japan.
• The Role of Language and Identity
• The complex relationship between language proficiency and cultural belonging, illustrated by personal anecdotes and the nuances of bilingual/mixed families.
• Empowerment & Mission
• Hiroko’s commitment to affirming TCK strengths, advocating for visibility and belonging, and empowering future generations through language and awareness.
• Song Highlight:
• Hiroko shares the story behind “I Am Me,” written to express the TCK experience and the emotional journey of finding home and identity. The episode closes with a moving excerpt from the song.

Songwriter: YUSHIO

Lyrics: Hiroko Nagata Bell

Singers: Minori Therrien Imai, Yaji Tomo, YUSHIO

Produced by Okannooto

Find Hiroko at:

https://www.instagram.com/uptck.jp

https://youtu.be/bXv6Kt1t8gM?si=fYzpoVSEkCOZCqOH

https://www.linkedin.com/in/hiroko-nagata-bell-6457811/

Here is a short excerpt from the song.Where are you from?

 It’s an easy question
 But not for me
 Here, there or nowhere, I don’t know
 
 I come from different places 
 Mix of words
 Mix of norms
 I wonder if I’m all mixed up
 
 Am I more like my dad
 Or more like my mom
 Or maybe neither 
 Where do I belong?
 Who am I?
 
 Made up my mind
 Won’t worry no more
 I don’t have to be like anyone else 
 Don’t define me
 Don’t confine me
 I am ME
 
 Where’s your home?
 It’s an easy question
 But not for me
 Here, there or nowhere, I don’t know
 

 
 

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this episode of Nomadic Diaries, hosts Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks are joined by Camie Fenton, a long-time resident of San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Camie shares her extraordinary journey of belonging, community, and creativity after making San Miguel her home for the past 25 years.

Key Discussion Highlights:

• Camie’s San Miguel Story:
  Camie reflects on her ties to the city, first forged through her uncle’s post-war art studies and deepened through familial connections and her own pursuit of art. She describes the enchanting street culture, architecture, and spontaneous warmth that drew her permanently to San Miguel.
• Changing Community:
  Camie talks about the rise of the Mexican middle class, infrastructural growth, and increased sophistication, but notes that the authentic soul of the city endures, especially in its markets, traditions, and welcoming spirit.
• Building Connections:
  Doreen shares how Camie’s openness and hospitality influenced her own decision to settle in San Miguel, sparking a conversation about the city’s strong sense of inclusion and non-transactional, spontaneous kindness.
• Cross-Cultural Blending:
  The episode delves into the integration between long-standing Mexican families and North American expats, with Camie describing a collaborative environment, especially in local NGOs and charities. Language may present some barriers, but shared experiences and compassion prevail.
• Advice for New Expats:
  Camie encourages newcomers to “smile, compliment people’s babies, and practice kindness.” She emphasizes the power of humility, humor, and a willingness to connect as keys to moving beyond observer status and becoming part of the fabric of San Miguel.
• Personal Growth:
  Camie shares how living in San Miguel has allowed her to reinvent herself, pursue latent interests, and contribute to community storytelling—all in a way that transcends societal expectations and allows her to experience true belonging.

Memorable Quotes

• “Belonging comes from our connectivity to what we do… crossing the street to the bodega, joining charities, saying hello.”
• “There’s a lack of the transactional aspect - you’re just invited to be part of something for no other reason than connection.”
• “If you can’t laugh at yourself, you probably shouldn’t come… it really takes some humility to ask for help.”

Resources Mentioned

• Atención Newspaper – An English-language publication for San Miguel’s expat community https://www.atencionnews.net
• San Miguel Walking and Shopping Guide – Cami’s guide for exploring the city’s best neighborhoods and spots
• Local NGOs & Charities – Such as Save the Rio Laja, Feed the Hungry, Pro Niños, Amigos de Animales

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt conversation on Nomadic Diaries: The Belonging Project, host Doreen Cumberford and co-host Megan Norton-Newbanks, interview Melki Siddiq, a communication coach, English teacher, counselor, and avid traveler.

 Melki reflects on his cross-cultural journey spanning India and Colombia, delving into the paradoxes of belonging, identity, and self. The conversation explores how constant movement can fragment - and also enrich - our sense of self, what it means to find home, and the nourishing power of community, rituals, and meaningful questions.

Key Themes & Highlights:

• Introduction to Melki Siddiq:
  Melki shares his professional background and experiences living in India and five years in Colombia. 
• The Paradox of Belonging:
  Melki describes belonging as a push and pull between seeking connection with others and preserving individuality, a sentiment familiar to third-culture and cross-cultural individuals.
  He shares, "Belonging everywhere and nowhere at once” - the tension and freedom of a nomadic identity.
• Skill of Adaptability:
  Through moving across cultures and languages, Melki developed adaptability and flexibility. He notes, however, that this flexibility may feel like fragmentation, prompting questions about identity and wholeness.
• Productive Tension & Self-Discovery:
  Melki views the inner tension of belonging as "a beautiful dance between being of the world and being in it." He regards self-inquiry as essential, asking: Can I belong somewhere without losing myself?.
• Grounding Rituals:
  Melki grounds himself through meditation and running—activities representing both stillness and movement, mirroring the oscillation within his own sense of belonging.
• Community and Safe Spaces:
  Melki values connections where masks are set aside and psychological safety is prioritized. He discusses his global network, including friendships formed at conferences and maintained through virtual meetups.
• Coaching & Reflection:
  As a coach, Melki prefers to guide rather than advise, encouraging self-discovery through reflective questions. Key prompts he uses:
  • Why am I seeking a sense of belonging?
  • Am I being authentic, or just trying to fit in?
  • Can I belong somewhere without losing myself?
  • How can I create spaces that welcome others’ individuality?
• Memorable Quotations:
• “We are the thread in the fabric, but also the fabric as well.”
• “Home is where your heart is.”
• “How do I create spaces that welcome individuality in others?”

Where to Find Melki:

• LinkedIn: Melki Siddiq
• Podcast: “Meaningful Conversations with Talk Cause” (Spotify)
• Website: talkcause.com

For Listeners:
This episode is a rich exploration of rootlessness, community, and the evolving nature of identity. Whether you’re a frequent traveler, an expat, or simply pondering your place in the world, Melki’s insights offer comfort and inspiration.

Thank you for tuning in to Nomadic Diaries: The Belonging Project. Don’t forget to subscribe, share your reflections, and join us next time.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

This special installment of the Nomadic Diaries podcast dives deep into the subject of belonging as it relates to nomads, expatriates, third culture kids (TCKs), and cross-cultural kids (CCKs).

Host Doreen Cumberford and co-host Megan Norton-Newbanks are joined by Author and Coach, Carolyn Grant to discuss the emotional geography of transitions, the process of resettling, and the personal and community-wide strategies for fostering a true sense of belonging.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Transitions vs. Change:
  Carolyn provides a powerful framework distinguishing external changes (like moving countries) from internal transitions (the psychological adaptation). She likens transition to a bridge with several emotional "markers"—from feeling settled, through phases of chaos and exhaustion, to finally feeling a sense of belonging in a new place.
• Personal Stories & Analogies:
  Carolyn shares her own experience as an "accidental immigrant," highlighting the hidden losses only noticed years later. She uses evocative metaphors like "the ear of the hippo" to express the way deep emotions and losses are often beneath the surface.
• Normalizing Transition:
  Through discovering the work of William Bridges and David Pollock, Carolyn and Megan emphasize how helpful it is to realize these feelings are normal -not a sign of personal failure or lack, but a universal part of the expat and nomadic experience.
• In-Person vs. Online Belonging:
  The group discusses the richness of face-to-face empathy and connection versus the limitations (but still the value) of online communities, particularly during the COVID pandemic.
• Inclusive Framework for TCKs/CCKs & Hidden Immigrants:
  The podcast explores identity beyond nationality and ethnicity, including stories from adoption and cross-cultural upbringing—how difference is not always visible or acknowledged.
• Tools and Strategies for Rebuilding Belonging:
  • Grieve the Losses: Name and process what you’re leaving behind.
  • Initiate Connections: Seek out groups, mentors, faith communities, and activities.
  • Embrace Fitting In vs. Belonging: Understand that true belonging takes time and is deeper than superficial assimilation.
  • Faith & Personal Resilience: Both faith and resilience are described as anchors during times of transition and disruption.

Find Carolyn at:

https://facebook.com/carolyngrant

www.navigatetransition.com

https://instagram.com/navigatetransition

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this insightful episode of Nomadic Diaries, hosts Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks delve into the mental health challenges and evolution of belonging on the expat journey with special guest Patrick Kadian, The Expat Hypnotherapis. Drawing from decades of global living, as well as expertise in multiple mental health modalities, Patrick Kadian explores how moving across continents continuously reshapes our understanding of identity, belonging, and well-being.

Key Topics Covered

• Patrick’s Personal Journey:
  Patrick Kadian shares how his sense of belonging shifted from comfort in being “apart” to craving deeper connection, particularly after starting a family. He describes the “unrecognized baggage” expats bring with them and how this affects both themselves and their loved ones.
• Expat Identity & Family Dynamics:
  The episode examines the unique struggles of the primary parent or “trailing spouse” in expat life and the ripple effects on children’s emotional well-being. Patrick Kadian stresses the importance of creating a sense of purpose and community, both for parents and their children.
• Mental Health Strategies:
  Patrick Kadian unpacks how different modalities especially hypnotherapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, mindfulness, and stress management - can support expats through periods of transition. He demystifies hypnotherapy, explaining how it works and how it relates to fundamental needs like sleep, nutrition, and emotional self-regulation.
• Trust and Self-Belonging:
  Trust—both in oneself and between therapist and client - is highlighted as central to healing and building belonging. Patrick Kadian offers practical advice on cultivating self-efficacy and inward belonging, suggesting daily practices to help navigate expat life’s ups and downs.
• The Power of Connection:
  The hosts and guest discuss the meaningfulness of the inner journey: how nourishing self-understanding and acceptance enables authentic connection with others, regardless of location.

Memorable Quotes

• “That sense of belonging apart was really very good for me for a very long time. But as I grew older… I wasn’t feeding this important part of me that needed to feel a closer sense of intimacy and belonging.” – Patrick Kadian
• “The more that we’re able to give parents a sense of belonging…that will have this kind of knock-on effect to be able to help build a greater sense of belonging for the children at home and even at school.” – Patrick Kadian
• “You can belong anywhere because you belong to yourself.” – Megan Norton-Newbanks

Resources Mentioned

• Hypnotherapy and mindfulness practices
• Parenting resources for expat families

Find Patrick at:  

www.theexpathypnotherapist.com

patrick@theexpathypnotherapist.com

Thanks for tuning in to The Belonging Project series! Don’t miss the next episode for more genuine conversations about navigating global life and forging authentic belonging.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Episode Overview: In this episode of Nomadic Diaries, co-hosts Megan Norton-Newbanks and Doreen Cumberford dive into the nuanced relationship between language and belonging. Drawing from their own global upbringings and experiences living in multiple countries, the hosts unpack how language—including dialects, family language mashups, and community-specific lingo—shapes our sense of home and connection.

Key Topics Discussed:

• Mother Tongues & Dialects:
  Doreen Cumberford reflects on the comforting remnants of the Scots dialect from her childhood in Scotland, while Megan Norton-Newbanks shares how her family’s unique blend of host languages creates a personal sense of home.
• Code-Switching, Acronyms & Systems:
  Megan Norton-Newbanks talks about adapting to the language systems of international schools and the Foreign Service, while Doreen Cumberford reminisces about mixing English and Arabic terms from her time in the Middle East.
• Language as Bridge & Barrier:
  The hosts discuss how English fluency both enables connection and, at times, hinders deeper integration with host cultures.
• Cultural Norms of Communication:
  Nuances in tone, pacing, and direct vs. indirect speech are highlighted as important for belonging—plus, the role of non-verbal language.
• Untranslatable Words:
  Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks muse on favorite words from other languages (like the Japanese "Kamaribi") that capture feelings or phenomena English can’t.
• The Emotional Impact of Language:
  Both hosts share stories of nostalgia, joy, and the complexity of reconnecting with community languages from their past.

Listener Invitation: The episode closes with a warm call for listeners to share untranslatable words, stories, or reflections about how language shapes their sense of belonging.

Languages Mentioned:

• Scots dialect
• English (multiple versions!)
• Arabic
• Japanese
• Spanish
• French
• Hungarian

Quotable Moments:

• “It’s almost like we’re carrying the place and the people with us, isn’t it?” 
• “…language shapes belonging and not through just national or local tongues, but also through idioms and community specific ways of speaking.” –

How to Connect: Do you have a story or an untranslatable word to share? The hosts would love to hear from you!

Thank you for tuning in to Nomadic Diaries: Belonging-Bites3-Languages! If you enjoyed today’s conversation, don’t forget to subscribe and join the journey of exploring belonging across borders and languages.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this thought-provoking episode of Nomadic Diaries, Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks interview Beatriz Nour  and dive deep into the complex and evolving concept of belonging—especially through the lens of those who live and move between cultures and places. From childhood roots to adult introspection, the conversation explores how connection and identity can be built, lost, found, and continuously redefined.

Key Topics & Insights

• Redefining Belonging:
  Beatrice discusses how her sense of belonging has changed over time, especially being born in France to Brazilian and Egyptian parents, living in Egypt, Dubai, and studying in France.
• Internal & External Work:
  Belonging isn’t just about location or other people; much of it is internal. Beatrice emphasizes the importance of introspection, recognizing and integrating different parts of oneself, and nurturing feelings of home and connection through personal practice.
• Creating Spaces for Others:
  The group discusses how to intentionally welcome people who may feel unsure about their own sense of belonging—whether they've moved, are cross-cultural, or simply feel "in between."
• Moments of Belonging:
  Belonging and clarity aren't always permanent—there are fleeting moments where we feel truly at home, which is normal and part of the journey.
• Connecting to Culture:
  Beatrice shares personal rituals, like listening to Brazilian music and making comfort food, as ways she grounds herself in her multicultural heritage.
• Belonging in Professional Life:
  The challenges of belonging also show up at work, especially when one’s multicultural background is misunderstood or undervalued in certain environments.
• Values as the Anchor:
  The episode closes with a powerful takeaway: knowing and living by your personal values makes navigating the complexities of cross-cultural life - and belonging - much easier, regardless of where you are.

Connect with Beatriz:

• Podcast: In Betweenish
• Instagram: @inbetweenish
• Listen on any major podcast platform

Final Thoughts:
This episode is for anyone navigating life between cultures or feeling “in-between.” Whether you’ve moved frequently, grown up with multiple identities, or feel like an outsider in your own hometown, you’ll find wisdom and comfort in the honest reflections shared here.

If you enjoy Nomadic Diaries, don’t forget to like, review, and share the podcast!

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this insightful episode of the Nomadic Diaries' Belonging Project miniseries, Doreen and Megan welcome Andrea Schmidt, a trilingual global teen life coach specializing in supporting third culture kids (TCKs), especially teenage girls. The conversation delves into the complex processes of identity formation and belonging for TCKs, challenges of boarding school experiences, and the importance of supportive frameworks for globally mobile families.

Key Topics Discussed

• Andrea’s Background:
  Certified coach & psychologist, works worldwide with TCK teenage girls in English, Spanish, and German, drawing on her own cross-cultural experiences.
• Identity vs. Belonging:
  • Identity: Self-concept; how one defines oneself in multicultural settings.
  • Belonging: The sense of connection to places, families, or cultures - often a challenge for TCKs who may feel “rootless” or “in between.”
• Boarding Schools & Family Dynamics:
  Discussion on TCKs who attend boarding schools, the impact on family bonds, and how frequent separation can challenge both belonging and emotional security.
• Preparation & Support:
  Many corporations offer limited prep for families relocating abroad. Some mission and military sectors offer more. Emotional support during transitions is often lacking.
• Coaching Approaches:
  Andrea uses the “RAFT” framework (Reconciliation, Affirmation, Farewells, Think Destination) to help teens process moves and transitions.
• Emotional Literacy & Struggles:
  Emphasizes developing an emotional vocabulary, modeling struggle (not just “success”), and the importance of parents taking care of themselves during transitions.
• Unique TCK Challenges for Teens:
  • Frequent moves and disrupted friendships
  • Navigating new languages, social norms, and academic systems
  • Managing “cultural homelessness” and assumptions about privilege
• Peer Connection & Trust:
  How repeated moves and goodbyes can affect confidence, trust, and willingness to form new connections. Andrea shares tips for both teens and parents.
• Coaching in Multiple Languages:
  Andrea sees flexibility and comfort switching languages in sessions as empowering for globally mobile teens.
• Long-Term Benefits of TCK Experience:
  • Enhanced cross-cultural skills, adaptability, and empathy
  • Advanced problem-solving and global mindset
  • Value for future careers and leadership opportunities

Memorable Quotes

Resources Mentioned

• RAFT Model for transitions
• Andrea's TED Talk (in Spanish and “hot pink heels!”)
• Andrea’s coaching platforms:
  • Instagram: @globalgirlcoach
  • LinkedIn: Andrea Schmidt
  • Website: globalgirlcoach.com

Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and review Nomadic Diaries wherever you get your podcasts.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this insightful second episode with Lois Bushong, the hosts dive deep into the concept of belonging for Third Culture Kids (TCKs), adult TCKs, and globally mobile families. Lois Bushong shares her expertise as a licensed marriage and family therapist, unpacking generational differences and the pivotal role of shared cultural memory of family and community. 

Key Topics & Insights

• Shared Cultural Memory & Belonging:
  Lois Bushong discusses how family rituals and cultural touchstones - such as holiday traditions and celebratory meals - help anchor a sense of belonging despite geographic and cultural shifts. 
• Artifacts and Home as Story:
  Doreen Cumberford and Megan reflect on how the physical items in their homes serve as tangible mirrors for their international journeys, helping in personal storytelling and connection.
• Finding Belonging Internally:
  The hosts reinforce the idea that true belonging starts within. Lois Bushong uses metaphors like “carry-on baggage” and a “sailboat navigating life" to illustrate how self-reflection, examining one’s values, and adaptation play a role in creating a sense of belonging that transcends location.
• Navigating Cross-Generational Connections:
  Strategies for bridging generational approaches include reading books (specifically plugging Megan Norton-Newbanks’s "Belonging Beyond Borders"), using metaphors in therapy, journaling, engaging in meaningful cultural activities, and seeking mentorship or peer support.
• Normalizing the TCK Experience:
  Lois Bushong validates the complex identity struggles of TCKs and encourages finding community (in-person or online), sharing stories, and normalizing feelings of not fully “fitting in” anywhere.

Practical Tips & Resources

• Reflect on Rituals:
  Maintain or adapt family traditions and cultural practices wherever you live—they foster continuity and safety.
• Use Artifacts:
  Surround yourself with objects and decorations that tell your story and spark conversations about your journey.
• Seek Community:
  Connect with other TCKs, join international groups, or engage in multicultural activities for shared understanding.
• Therapeutic Tools:
  Explore counseling, coaching, and journaling. Directories like the International Therapist Directory can help find culturally competent therapists.
• Recommended Books:
  • “Belonging Beyond Borders” by Megan Norton-Newbanks
  • “Belonging Everywhere and insights into Counseling the Global Blue Mobile” by Lois Bushong

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this episode, Lois Bushong joins Megan Norton-Newbanks and Doreen Cumberford - Host of Nomadic Diaries for a thoughtful discussion on belonging among Third Culture Kids (TCKs), globally mobile families, and expats. The conversation covers generational differences, the power of cultural memory and rituals, strategies for fostering belonging across generations, and personal reflections on identity.

Main Topics Covered

• Shared Cultural Memory & Rituals:
  Lois Bushong explains how rituals—like celebrating cultural holidays or maintaining family traditions—create a sense of safety and belonging. Examples include celebrating Christmas Eve Latin American style and maintaining personal and familial touchstones from various cultures.
• Physical and Emotional Belonging:
  The hosts discuss how belonging isn't just physical, but deeply tied to our internal self and relationships. Lois Bushong uses metaphors to highlight the process of sorting through personal "baggage" and adjusting values, much like sailing and constantly refining your course.
• Strategies to Bridge Generational Approaches:
  Suggestions include reading Megan’s book Belonging Beyond Borders, using metaphors for self-discovery, journaling, seeking out international communities, connecting with other TCKs, and accessing counseling or coaching (especially with professionals experienced in TCK identity or trauma).
• Authentic Connections & Storytelling:
  Sharing stories about meaningful objects and international experiences helps elicit a sense of community and personal truth.
• Continuous Process of Belonging:
  The hosts agree that belonging is never static—it's a lifelong work in progress and sometimes requires cognitive reframing and conscious decisions.

Memorable Quotes

• "There is not going to be a perfect country that I'm going to land in. It's what's inside that's important." - Lois Bushong
• "Life is like being on a sailboat... we're always having to adjust the sails, adjust where we're going." - Lois Bushong

Resources & Recommendations

• Books Mentioned:
  • Belonging Beyond Borders by Megan Norton-Newbanks
• Belonging Everywhere and Nowhere by Lois Bushong

Find Lois/Megan/Doreen

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/lois-bushong-a3241ab/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/megancnorton/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/doreenmcumberford/

Connect With Us:
Like, review, and share your comments!  Thanks for listening to Nomadic Diaries. 

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this episode of Nomadic Diaries, hosts Doreen Cumberford, Megan Norton-Newbanks welcome Lois Bushong, Author, Retired Counselor and Coaching expert on Third Culture Kids (TCKs). This conversation dives deep into the ever-evolving concepts of home and belonging, exploring generational differences, digital community building, and the psychological needs that underpin our sense of “place.”

Key Discussion Points

1. Home vs. Belonging

• Lois distinguishes between "home" (a physical space) and "belonging" (an emotional, psychological state).
• You can be in your literal home but not feel a sense of belonging, and vice versa.

2. Maslow’s Hierarchy and Belonging

• Belonging sits just above basic needs (food, water, safety) in Maslow’s Hierarchy, emphasizing its foundational importance.

3. Third Culture Kids (TCKs)

• Defined as individuals who spend their formative years outside their passport country.
• Lois shares her expertise working with adult TCKs and reflects on the impact of living between cultures.

4. Generational Perspectives

• Lois breaks down differences between Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, Gen Z, and even Generations Alpha/Beta.
• Younger generations are often more comfortable finding community online and are attuned to diversity and inclusion, whereas older generations favor face-to-face interactions, loyalty, and stability.

5. The Digital Shift

• The rise of technology has transformed experiences, with terms like “experience plagiarism” and “sensory hijacking” describing how online interactions can dilute genuine life experiences.
• Despite challenges, Lois and others note positives—like the ability to maintain meaningful connections through digital tools.

6. Authentic Belonging

• Defined as genuine, vulnerable connection, whether in-person or online.
• The group agrees that authentic belonging can occur in digital spaces when interactions are honest and supportive.

7. Changing Work Environments

• From office-centric workdays to remote, location-independent jobs, the sense of community and routine has shifted.
• Loneliness and isolation can result, but digital check-ins and intentional connections (like sending a daily heart emoji) are important new practices.

8. Internalizing Belonging

• Lois highlights the importance of cultivating internal belonging, especially when external circumstances change.
• Healthy, authentic relationships act as reflective “mirrors,” helping us to truly see ourselves.

Notable Quotes:

• “A home is a physical place... Belonging is a psychological concept.” Lois Bushong
• “Authentic belonging is when you’re real with someone - not fake, not pretend.” Lois Bushong
• “Digital communities break down physical barriers, but you still need authenticity for true belonging.” Lois Bushong

Takeaways

• Belonging looks different across generations and platforms - but its need remains urgent.
• Whether through face-to-face conversation, a heartfelt message, or a daily digital check-in, intentionality and authenticity are essential.
• For nomads, expats, and TCKs, belonging is both an internal journey and a relational one.

Find Lois/Megan/Doreen

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/lois-bushong-a3241ab/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/megancnorton/
• https://www.linkedin.com/in/doreenmcumberford/

Please subscribe to Nomadic Diaries 

https://www.nomadicdiariespodcast.com/contac

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In the inaugural episode of Nomadic Diaries, hosts Doreen Cumberford and Megan Norton-Newbanks dive deep into the concept of “belonging” within the context of global mobility, international relocations, and the personal effects of constantly moving across borders.

They explore:

• The connection between cycles of relocation, relational loss, and a sense of belonging.
• The ways globally mobile people, such as Third Culture Kids (TCKs) and expats, interpret, navigate, and sometimes “gatekeep” their own feelings of home and connection.
• The importance of self-awareness, self-care, and self-agency in cultivating belonging wherever life takes you.
• Plans for upcoming episodes, including a broad spectrum of guests - from those who grew up around the globe, to experts and thought leaders in cross-cultural studies and belonging.
• The power of storytelling and dialogue as tools for healing, fostering connection, and building community in an increasingly divided world.

Key Takeaways

• Belonging is Human: At its core, belonging is about being willing to be human with each other, to share stories, and create connection.
• Variety of Perspectives: Future guests will offer diverse voices and experiences, encouraging a multifaceted understanding of what it means to belong.
• Audience Goals: The hosts hope listeners will reflect on their own experiences, feel inspired toward self and collective understanding, and recognize that no one is truly alone.
• Bridging Divides: In a world marked by polarization and loneliness, this series seeks to empower, heal, and bring listeners together through authentic dialogue and shared journeys.

Memorable Quotes

• “If we think about the word belong, it literally means to go with. And so let's go with the interviewees and the listeners together in this project.” — Megan Norton
• “This is the heart of why we are doing this specific podcast.” — Doreen Cumberford

Call to Action

Subscribe, follow, and leave a review for Nomadic Diaries! 

Connect with us:
If you have questions, reflections, or stories of your own, keep listening and get involved! Peace and connection are waiting for you on this journey.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

The Plot Twist Nobody Warns You About!

In this insightful conversation, Angie Weinberger returns to Nomadic Diaries to explore the complex emotions and practical challenges faced by expats and global citizens, especially around repatriation and defining "home." Angie, based in Zurich, shares her expertise on supporting expats and expat partners with global mobility.

Key Topics Covered

• Maintaining International Connections:
  Angie and the host discuss the challenges of keeping deep global friendships alive, especially when returning "home." Practical tips like celebrating milestones and joining digital communities (e.g., Facebook groups, associations) are shared, along with the realities of how relationships may change over time.
• Defining "Home":
  Home is explored as both a physical place and an internal state of security and comfort. The guests reflect on how the concept evolves with experience and how global citizens can find their sense of home wherever they are.
• Re-entry & Psychological Adjustment:
  The episode dives into the emotional stages of re-entry, highlighting the "honeymoon," "negotiation," "adjustment," and "acceptance" phases (drawing from the Kubler-Ross grief model). Angie emphasizes that each repatriation journey is unique, and that support systems like coaching and therapy can be crucial during the process.
• Invisible Grief:
  Tanya brings up the "invisible grief" many experience when settling back into their home country, where others often can't understand the loss of international connections and lifestyle.
• Leveraging Overseas Experiences:
  to use their intercultural competencies after returning home—such as mentoring younger professionals, volunteering, or building international business networks.
• Benefits of Working with a Global Mobility Coach:
  Angie explains how her clients receive tailored support, ranging from technical advice on assignments to emotional coaching for family transitions. She highlights the value of long-term intentional coaching partnerships.

Notable Quotes

Resources & Ways to Connect

• Angie Weinberger:
  • Website: globalpeopletransitions.com
  • Email: angie@globalpeopletransitions.com

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Episode Overview

In this insightful episode of Nomadic Diaries, host Doreen Cumberford re-interviews Angie Weinberger, a renowned expert in global mobility and repatriation. Angie shares her deep knowledge about the complex journey of returning “home” after years abroad, unraveling common myths and real-life challenges that expats and global nomads often face.

Key Topics Discussed

• Reverse Culture Shock:
  Angie explains why returning to your home country can sometimes be more challenging than moving abroad in the first place. Many expats idealize their homeland, only to have reality fall short upon their return.
• Intercultural Adjustment:
  Even brief international experiences can fundamentally change personal values, communication styles, and identities, often more than most repats expect.
• Common Repatriation Challenges:
  • Psychological adjustment and feelings of disconnect
  • Overwhelming administrative burdens (immigration, documentation, logistics)
  • Integrating international spouses and managing children’s adjustment, especially in different education systems
  • Employment concerns—lacking positions at home, rebuilding professional networks
  • Financial considerations, especially planning around multinational pensions, taxes, and retirement
• Personal Transformation:
  Both Angie and Doreen reflect on how global experiences permanently alter the “core” of a person, and the importance of articulating these changes in one’s home environment.
• Practical Tips for Repatriates:
  • Take things one step at a time - utilize checklists for admin tasks
  • Seek out professional guidance early (tax consultants, financial advisors, coaches)
  • Use journaling, mindfulness, or other reflective practices to process change
  • Build a support system of others who understand the international journey
  • Acknowledge both the visible and invisible elements involved in moving “home”
• Special Considerations for Retirees:
  • Managing pensions, tax liabilities, and social security across multiple countries
  • Planning the next phase of life - “rewirement” rather than just retirement
• Admin Burden:
  Do not underestimate the complexity and emotional weight of bureaucracy involved with every international move—even frequent movers make this mistake.

Angie’s Top Advice

The most common mistake? Underestimating the impact of reverse culture shock and mis-attributing feelings of discomfort to the wrong causes. Recognize that it’s a normal psychological transition, not a sign of depression or failure.

Connect with Angie Weinberger:

• Company: Global People Transitions
• Email: angela@globalpeopletransitions.com
• LinkedIn: Angie Weinberger
• Blog: Global People Club Sandwich
• Website: ngweinberger.ch

Thank you for tuning in to Nomadic Diaries!

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this heartfelt episode of Nomadic Diaries, host Doreen Cumberford chats with Brigitte Muller, a South African marketing strategist and long-term expat living in Tampa, Florida. They delve into the complexities of expat life, from the economic realities that drive difficult moves, to the richness and challenges of adapting to life in a new culture, grappling with grief from afar, and the deep sense of purpose that keeps expats motivated.

Key Topics Covered

1. Brigitte’s Expat Journey:
Brigitte shares her decision to leave South Africa due to economic uncertainty and concerns for long-term security. She candidly speaks about the heartbreak of leaving a beloved homeland and the laborious process of immigrating to the US, including the emotional and practical hurdles she and her partner faced on arrival.

2. Finding Reward in a New Land:
Despite the struggles, Brigitte discusses the rewards of her move: better economic opportunities, access to travel, and, eventually, US citizenship—unlocking newfound freedom and ease of mobility around the world.

3. Navigating Grief and Distance:
The group explores the unique grief that expats face when losing loved ones from afar—compounded by financial, logistical, and emotional obstacles. Brigitte shares her experiences and the painful reality of being unable to return home for important events.

4. Coping Strategies and Maintaining Connection:
Brigitte and Tanya discuss how intentional communication and setting aside time for meaningful connections with friends and family back home can help mitigate the guilt and regret that distance can cause. They touch on the importance of creating a “rainy day fund” for emergencies and embracing rituals that keep them connected to their roots.

5. Living with Purpose as an Expat:
Brigitte reflects on “the price of expat life” and describes how her passion for supporting South Africans at home—by hiring them in her digital marketing business—fuels her daily life. Purpose, she explains, balances the intensity and emotional highs and lows inherent in expat living.

6. Advice for Expat Listeners:
Brigitte encourages expats suffering from distance and grief to find local communities around shared passions, facilitating connection, belonging, and a sense of home in their new environment.

Contact Brigitte:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brigettemuller/

https://www.youtube.com/@brigettemullerxdigital

https://www.facebook.com/brigette.muller/

Memorable Quotes

• “The American dream is a real thing. You work hard, you really can make a good living for yourself.”  Brigitte Muller
• “The price of anything is the amount of life you are willing to pay for it.”  Henry David Thoreau
• “I own it with everything in me… I listen to the music, I seek out the food, I seek out people to speak to just to get that taste of home for a minute.”  Brigitte Muller

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Some time ago I recorded this episode of Nomadic Diaries with Todd Nims, an Aramco Brat whose parents we had known in Saudi Arabia.

Episode Highlights
In this captivating conversation, we explore the fascinating journey of filmmaker and cultural bridge-builder Todd Nimms, whose unique upbringing between Saudi Arabia and America shaped his perspective on identity, belonging, and cross-cultural understanding.

Todd's Intercultural Roots
Todd Nimms was born in Saudi Arabia to an American family, as his father worked for Aramco. His formative years were split between Saudi Arabia and the United States, creating a rich foundation as a "third culture kid" - someone raised in a culture different from their parents'. This experience included dramatic moments like evacuations during geopolitical tensions, including the Gulf War, shaping his understanding of cultural adaptation from an early age.

The Filmmaking Journey That Made History
Todd's documentary "Home: The Aramco Brats Story" became the first publicly screened film in Saudi Arabia in 30 years, a groundbreaking cultural moment. The film explores the unique expatriate experience of Americans in Saudi Arabia across multiple decades, resonating with international audiences and expatriate communities worldwide. Through intimate storytelling, Todd captures the complexity of living between worlds and the lasting impact of cross-cultural childhoods.

Navigating Repatriation Challenges
One of the most poignant topics Todd addresses is the emotional impact of repatriation - returning "home" to a place that doesn't quite feel like home. He discusses the identity confusion many third culture individuals face, together with strategies for finding community among others with shared experiences. 

Cultural Fluency as a Superpower
Todd brings nuanced insights into navigating different cultural contexts, highlighting the importance of understanding cultural norms and communication styles and how family influences shape cultural adaptation. 

Serendipitous Return to Saudi Arabia
After years abroad, Todd's journey came full circle when he returned to Saudi Arabia through film and theater projects. He has played a pivotal role in developing the Saudi film industry, including work on the historical drama "Born a King," and creating innovative immersive theater experiences that bridge traditional and contemporary Saudi culture.

Building Cross-Cultural Bridges
Todd now focuses on initiatives connecting U.S. and Saudi film industries, continuing to innovate and champion authentic Saudi narratives. His work exemplifies how creative projects can foster deeper cross-cultural understanding and challenge preconceptions on both sides.

Vision for a Globalized Future
Throughout our conversation, Todd expressed optimism about how cross-cultural experiences can foster greater global understanding. He believes that sharing diverse stories through film and other creative media can help build bridges between seemingly different cultures.

Connect with Todd
Follow Todd's ongoing projects and cultural initiatives:  https://linkedin.com/toddnims 

https://facebook.com/NimsFilms

https://m.imdb.com/name/nm2164461/

https://twitter.com/toddnims

Stay Connected:

Thanks for lending us your ears!

https://www.nomadicdiariespodcast.com/

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Key Topics Discussed

• Tracy’s Expat Journey:
  Tracy shares her path from Aberdeen, Scotland to Mexico, with stops in Houston and Cancun, and explains how her kids have thrived in a multilingual, multicultural environment.
• San Miguel de Allende for Families:
  It is definitely shifting from a retiree-focused town to an increasingly family-friendly destination, with multi-generational families taking root.
• Safety and Community:
  Both guests address common concerns about safety in Mexico, providing personal perspectives about the security and tight-knit community feel in San Miguel.
• Education Options:
  Bilingual and international schools, online learning, tutoring, and the growth in education opportunities since COVID. Tracy discusses her children’s experiences in local schools, including successful transitions to higher education abroad.
• Healthcare and Wellbeing:
  Access to top-tier medical facilities, the proximity of Queretaro (a major health and university hub), and affordable care for expat families.
• Recreation & Social Life:
  Sports, arts, music, horseback riding, and a vibrant social landscape for kids and adults alike. Parenting in San Miguel means ample activities and a supportive expat network.
• Third Culture Kids:
  The unique worldview, adaptability, and independence gained by children raised in a culture different from their parents’ backgrounds.
• Real Estate Realities:
  An honest conversation about San Miguel’s property market—what to expect regarding prices and services—and Tracy’s comprehensive approach to supporting relocating families.
• Cultural Adjustments:
  Overcoming language and administrative hurdles, and the patient mindset needed to embrace Mexico’s different pace and approach to life.

Memorable Quotes

• “It’s a big step, but if you plan it correctly, connect with the right people, and do your research, it doesn’t seem overwhelming.” – Tracy Moss
• “I feel safer here than in some places in the US.” – Tracy Moss
• “The gift of being fully bilingual opens so many doors for your children.” – Tracy Moss
• “You get things done, but it’s a little slower—your mindset has to really change.” – Tracy Moss

Resources & Mentions

• San Miguel de Allende – A renowned town in Mexico, popular among retirees and now families.
• Berkshire Hathaway Luxury Collection – Tracy’s real estate agency.
• Queretaro – Nearby city with extensive healthcare and educational resources.
• TCK (Third Culture Kids) – Children raised in a culture different from their parents.

If you know someone considering a move to Mexico or San Miguel de Allende, share this episode! For more inspiring expat stories and practical advice, follow Nomadic Diaries wherever you listen to podcasts.

Connect with Tracy:

• Website: buyinsanmiguel.com
• Berkshire Hathaway Home Services: Company website
• tracymossrealestate
  Facebook: TracyMoss
  Web page: www.buyinsanmiguel.com & https://bhhscolonialhomessanmiguel.com
  Youtube channel. @TracyMossRealEstateSanMiguel
• Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a friend! For more stories, insights, and expert advice, keep tuning in to Nomadic Diaries—the podcast helping expats and digital nomads master the art of transition.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this episode of Nomadic Diaries, host Doreen Cumberford welcomes friend and real estate expert Tracy Moss to discuss the ins and outs of buying property in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. 

Tracy draws on her 20+ years in Mexico, sharing practical steps, insider tips, and cultural insights to help expatriates, digital nomads, and dreamers navigate the real estate market with confidence.

Key Topics & Highlights

1. Real Estate in San Miguel de Allende

• Tracy explains her holistic approach with Berkshire Hathaway, emphasizing personalized service and broad access to listings,
• Home prices range from $150,000 to luxury properties upwards of $5 million, with options for every budget and lifestyle.

2. Neighborhoods Unpacked

• Central neighborhoods like Centro and Parque Juarez offer vibrant energy, culture, and high-end homes.
• Quieter, spacious areas (such as Los Frailes and golf communities) are ideal for those desiring more land, gardens, or a country feel.
• Unique options include vineyard estates and horse properties, reminiscent of Tuscany.

3. The Buying Process Made Simple

• Foreigners can own property in San Miguel and receive proper title deeds.
• You don’t need permanent residency; even tourist visa holders can purchase property.
• The buying process involves permits (SRE), legal assistance, inspections in English, escrow (10% deposit), and typically takes around 6-8 weeks for deed delivery.
• Tracy’s team helps with power of attorney for clients who can’t be present at closing.

4. Cost of Living & Utilities

• While closing costs are slightly higher (5-5.2%), property taxes are strikingly low ($300-$500/year).
• Utilities and public transport are affordable—water and electricity are much less than in the US; internet is the most significant utility expense.

5. Transportation

• San Miguel offers reliable public buses (6-10 pesos/ride), affordable taxis and Ubers, and easy intercity travel options.

6. Market Trends

• Stable prices with a recent uptick in new residents and rapid absorption of new inventory.
• Last year saw a slowdown due to elections, but 2024 is bringing renewed interest.

7. Cultural Adjustments

• Language barrier and adapting to a more relaxed pace (“mañana culture”) are the main challenges for newcomers.
• Tracy offers ongoing support for clients, helping bridge cultural and logistical gaps.

8. Advice for Prospective Buyers

• Don’t hesitate to ask for help or guidance.
• Consider renting first if you’re unsure - Tracy can facilitate rentals, too.
• Many clients express only one regret: not moving sooner.

Tracy’s Top Tip

“Don’t be scared to reach out and ask for help, and if you’re on the fence, try renting for a few months before buying. Life’s an experiment - give it a go, even for a year.”

Connect with Tracy:

• Website: buyinsanmiguel.com
• Berkshire Hathaway Home Services: Company website
• tracymossrealestate
  Facebook: TracyMoss
  Web page: www.buyinsanmiguel.com & https://bhhscolonialhomessanmiguel.com
  Youtube channel. @TracyMossRealEstateSanMiguel
• Enjoyed this episode? Please share it with a friend! For more stories, insights, and expert advice, keep tuning in to Nomadic Diaries—the podcast helping expats and digital noma

Support the show

Home is Where Your Story Crosses Borders!

We aim to inspire expat solutions, by helping you navigate global living wit

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

Doreen Cumberford welcomes Patrick Kadian - an expat, hypnotherapist, and expert on mental health for global nomads. With over 30 years of expat experience spanning 16 countries, Patrick offers a unique perspective on raising third culture kids (TCKs), navigating transitions, and caring for the mental wellbeing of globally mobile families. The focus is on understanding the TCK experience, the challenges these children face, and practical strategies parents can use to help their kids thrive during international moves.

Topics We Covered

Defining Third Culture Kids (TCKs)

• TCKs are children who spend significant formative years living outside their parents' passport country, existing in a “liminal space” between cultures.
• Discussion on differences between “traditional” TCKs (longer stays per country) versus highly mobile digital nomad families.

Core Challenges for TCKs

• Issues with identity, rootlessness, and restlessness.
• Stacked “miniature griefs” from repeated goodbyes and transitions.
• The importance of parental awareness and intentional support for emotional resilience.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)

• Explanation of ACEs and their long-term health implications.
• Frequent moves and cultural transitions can increase ACE scores for expat children.

Emotional Regulation & Resilience

• Practical techniques for both parents and children, drawing from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
• Tools like the “acceptance tool”—learning to sit with uncomfortable feelings and emotions and build psychological flexibility.
• Emphasis on consistency, presence, and the importance of parents being a “safe home base.”

Hypnotherapy & Mindfulness Practices

• Clarification: Hypnosis is not mind control, but a form of deep relaxation similar to guided meditation.
• Discussion of how both hypnosis and meditation can calm the nervous system, helping individuals (children and adults) stay within their “window of tolerance” during stressful transitions.
• Suggested resources, including Patrick’s guided exercises and recommended books like Good Inside and The Whole Brain Child.

Actionable Takeaways

• For Parents: Start regulation work early—be present, emotionally available, and focus on being a consistent source of safety amid change.
• For Families on the Move: Acknowledge and talk about grief and loss; use regular mindfulness or meditation practices to build resilience.
• Understanding When to Seek Help: Trust your instincts if you or your child seems stuck, highly reactive, or overwhelmed, reach out to a professional like Patrick for supportive techniques.

Resources & Links

• Patrick Kadian's Website: www.theexpathypnotherapist.com
  • Listen to guided recordings and practical exercises
  • Book a free introductory chat or send a message directly
• Books Mentioned:
  • Good Inside by Dr. Becky Kennedy
  • The Whole Brain Child by Dr. Dan Siegel
• Other Areas to Explore:
  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) resources
  • TCK Training by Tanya Crossman

Final Thoughts

This episode underscores that while global mobility presents unique emotional hurdles, it also cultivates strengths and “superpowers” in kids and families. Mindful, connected parenting and self-awareness are key to creating not just well-traveled, but well-balanced human beings.

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.

In this insightful episode of Nomadic Diaries, host Doreen Cumberford sits down with Lucyna Bolin, a seasoned expat coach, marathon runner, and mother of two, to discuss the realities behind the polished exterior of expatriate life. Lucy discusses how success abroad doesn't always equal happiness. This is the paradox of the high-achieving expat. 

Key Topics & Highlights:

• Lucy’s Expat Journey:
  Lucy recounts how a one-year stay in the US turned into a 20-year global adventure, finally repatriating to Poland with her family. She discusses the challenges and surprises of returning "home".
• Run for Mental Health:
  Lucy talks about her upcoming marathon in support of the charity CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), underlining the importance of mental health awareness among expats and high-achievers.
• The Hidden Struggles of Expats:
  Despite enviable lives showcased on social media, expats often face isolation, difficulty finding genuine connections, struggles with identity, sleep, work-life balance, and unspoken mental health challenges.
• Expectations and Vulnerability:
  High-achieving expats may feel pressure to manage everything themselves, leading to a reluctance to seek help and increased disconnection from loved ones both locally and back home.
• Building Authentic Connections:
  Lucy offers practical advice for intentionally and strategically building a support network as an expat—whether through hobbies, spontaneous connections, or structured meetups—and shares touching personal anecdotes.
• Confidence and Adaptation:
  The expat journey can shake one’s confidence as cultural expectations shift. Lucy explains the need to recalibrate self-image and embrace a new way of being confident in unfamiliar settings.
• Types of Expats & Their Unique Challenges:
  Lucy identifies four expat archetypes—those preparing to move, first-timers in the honeymoon phase, repeat movers, and long-term nomads or repatriates. She encourages self-compassion and embracing the trade-offs of global living.
• The Importance of Community:
  Well-being and thriving abroad hinge on understanding and nurturing the right kind of social connections for individual needs, from deep friendships to activity-specific groups.
• Holistic Coaching Approach:
  Lucy describes her coaching framework, utilizing the "Wheel of Life" to address eight interconnected areas: career, family/friends, finances, hobbies/recreation, environment, personal development, health, and significant relationships.

Memorable Quotes

• “Once an expat, always an expat.” - Lucyna Bolin
• “Living abroad is a trade-off. You will never truly ‘fit in’ and that’s okay.” –  Lucyna Bolin
• “Home is a decision; it is not a place.”  Doreen Cumberford
• “We are holistic—one topic in our life touches all areas.” Doreen Cumberford

Connect with Lucyna Bolin

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucybolincoaching/ 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwuTaPuA8fNG2HOpNOKzRPw/videos

https://www.facebook.com/lucyna.bolin

www.lucynabolin.com 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwuTaPuA8fNG2HOpNOKzRPw/videos 

We are a small, independent podcast! If you have benefited from Nomadic Diaries in any way, we would love to hear from you. We appreciate your s

Support the show

Home is Where Your Story Crosses Borders!

We aim to inspire expat solutions, by helping you navigate global living

We would love to hear from you, send us a text please!

Support the show

You can map the move. You cannot map the metamorphosis. Nomadic Diaries explores the interior journey of expat life — the belonging, the identity shifts, the repatriation, and everything that travels with you that can't be packed in a suitcase. This episode may be part of our Re-Entry Series (30 episodes on coming home) or The Belonging Project (29 episodes on belonging across cultures). Browse the full catalog at nomadicdiariespodcast.com and please share or leave a review if this episode resonated.