Hi everyone! My name is Maddie Eden, and I’m a senior at Butler studying Human Communications and Organizational Leadership. I studied abroad my sophomore year through the GALA program, and we went to Europe. More specifically, I visited Italy, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Sweden and Denmark. Studying abroad was one of the best things I did while at Butler, and I decided to become a peer advocate so I could share my experiences and help other Butler students study abroad. I chose to do my panel on mental health because I think it’s such an important topic that not many students think about before they go abroad. I wanted to share my own experiences as well as hear from other Butler students so future study abroad participants could be better prepared and have their questions answered.
Mental health was something that I had thought about a little before I left to go abroad, but looking back I don’t think I gave it enough consideration. Mostly I was concerned about feeling isolated and homesick and not enjoying my time away from my friends. However, I personally didn’t experience much homesickness. For me, the hardest thing about studying abroad was learning when to say no and take a break.
While you’re abroad you’re immersed into a new culture, but you only have a limited amount of time to experience it. Whether you’re there for three months, six months, or a year, no one can study abroad forever. That being said, there’s a lot of pressure felt to be constantly doing something or having a new experience. You don’t want anyone to think that you wasted a single second while abroad, so you don’t. This was what took a toll on my mental health. In addition to this, I also studied abroad with a group of Butler students. Traveling and living with a group of fifteen people makes it virtually impossible to have alone time. This was also a difficult thing for me, because finding time for yourself is essential to your mental well-being.
I’m a homebody and more of a low-key person. I would much rather spend a night in than go out to do something. Going from that to being busy 24/7 was super difficult for me. After a few weeks of this, I knew that I had to start taking some personal days if I was going to make it through the trip. These personal days can look different for everyone; For me, it mostly consisted of staying in the hotel for the day, usually journaling, watching a TV show, or reading. It’s a day devoted to you so your mind can decompress and take a break.
I wish I had realized that breaks were necessary from the very beginning. Once I started taking personal days for myself whenever they felt necessary, I was much happier and more energized. It made my trip go more smoothly than it would have without them. I think the most important thing to remember is that everyone is humans, and humans aren’t meant to go non-stop all of the time. Breaks are necessary, and normal, and they can make all of the difference when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
I loved listening to the Butler students that participated in my mental health panel because while everyone participated in a different program, we all had similar experiences with self care and mental health while abroad. For example, all four of us journaled while we were abroad. It was a great way for everyone to reflect and get their thoughts down at the end of a long day. We also all agreed on the importance of exercise, and utilized long walks as a form of self care. My panel taught me that we all had experiences with mental health while abroad, and there are many ways to handle that, depending on what works best for each individual person.
Overall, mental health is a pressing topic to consider before studying abroad, and I hope that this panel can help future Butler students and answer any questions they might have. Mental health and self care looks different for everyone, but once you find what works for you it can make all of the difference.