Making the adjustment

[annelizabeth 1]

My hubby subscribed to BBC America for me as a surprise and I can also recommend uknova.com for downloading soaps and stuff when you need a TV fix!

[Donal78 0]

Hi everyone. I've spent the last hour on here going through posts talking about the difficulties both the non-USC and USC deal with when the non-USC emigrates. About halfway through, I decided it would be a good idea to compile a list of what many people who've been through this recommend as both simple and important ways to make the transition for both parties a little easier.

With my own fiance arriving on Tuesday night, I think both of us (naturally) are a little anxious about what awaits. The list below is something I'm going to print and post in our home to remind both of us of easy ways to make things a little better whenever the going gets tough. I hope this helps some other people out there as well.

-Talk about our hopes and dreams

-Talk about our fears

-Talk, talk, talk some more. Communication is key!

-Smile and laugh

-Dance

-Take walks

-Exercise

-Find a hobby together

-Have a hobby of our own

-Touch, touch, touch

-Have a routine

-Meet new people, together and on our own

-Find folks in Indy who have done what we are doing!

-Read Peoples Republic of Cork website regularly

-Create a blog with lots of photos

-Send hand-written letters home

-get a webcam, and use Skype

-Talk to each other’s families

-Talk to a professional if that’s what we need to do

-Let’s volunteer

-Eat well

-Listen to Irish radio stations over the internet

-Remind ourselves why we’re doing this, why we're in the U.S. and not Ireland, why we love each other

-Try to be positive!!

-It’s ok to grieve about what has changes in our lives, and to recognize some feelings as grief

-Try to understand each other’s point of view

-Be friends and treat each other as friends

-Be kind to each other

-Have D’s family tape tv shows and send them over

I know this is a long list, but I really do think it might help. I'm a visual person, and seeing things in print in front of me makes me a lot more apt to do them. Good luck to all of us, I'll let you know which of these ideas is most helpful for us.

One more thing, perhaps most important of all:

-Don’t be selfish- be selfless!!

wow thats pretty much what i was thinking lately.I was going to start a thread till i found yours. Is mrdurken from cork then? Im from Galway myself and myself and my fiance fly out from shannon next tuesday - days and counting.

Thanx for sharing your list with us.