I lived in Europe for 7 years before returning to the US. Here are 3 things I did right and 3 I wish I'd done differently.

• I'm an American who spent seven years abroad in Budapest, Hungary, before returning to the US.
• I'm grateful I gave myself enough time to pack and kept documentation of my time in Europe.
• But I wish I'd started job hunting sooner and had more realistic expectations about starting over.

After seven wonderful years in Budapest, I had to move back to the US in early 2025 because of visa issues.

Packing up my life and saying goodbye to my community, network, and home was an emotional whirlwind — to say the least.

Looking back, there are things I'm grateful I did, and others I would have done differently to make the transition easier. Here they are.

Leaving plenty of time to pack helped me maintain my sanity

When it came time to pack, I slowly deconstructed my apartment over the course of a month.

I made endless trips to the thrift store, posted on Facebook Marketplace, and even hosted a move-out party where I made snacks for my friends while they raided my closet.

After all that, I still found myself frantically sitting on my suitcase, trying to zip it right up until my ride to the airport arrived.

However, I can't imagine how stressed I would have been if I had left packing to the last minute.

I'm glad I kept or digitized all of my foreign documents

From Hungarian tax forms to old leases, I'm glad I had the foresight to keep all my paperwork from my time abroad.

Since much of my work was international, I didn't have as extensive a paper trail here in the States. I feel relieved that I have all my documents, so I don't appear to have been a "ghost" for all that time.

Plus, keeping them helped me sort out my finances when I got home. I spent a lot of my early years in Budapest operating off of feelings instead of building financial literacy skills, and that didn't put me in the best spot.

Reflecting on old tax and income documents helped me come to terms with the rocky finances of my early 20s and motivated me to make a better game plan for my next phase of life.

Making time to grieve once I was back in the US was essential for healing

Losing the connections, friends, and home I'd built over seven years was shocking.

At first, I tried to stay positive by looking for silver linings, such as being home for family birthdays and surrounded by the gorgeous Pacific Northwest nature. However, I eventually had to slow down and let myself feel the heartbreak.

I took a social media break from friends and events in Budapest, so I could be mentally present in my new situation.

Talking about this transition on social media also helped me build a community with other former expats going through the same thing.

However, I wish I'd started the job hunt sooner

Unfortunately, before returning, I underestimated the state of the US job market. Although I found a part-time job as a barista to supplement my freelance marketing gigs, I still haven't found longer-term work that's both a financial and vocational fit.

I've come to realize that relationships are what make the world go round, both professionally and personally, and after seven years abroad, I had to rebuild my Stateside network nearly from scratch.

I wish I'd started putting out feelers as soon as I'd known I was returning to the US, and I wish I had signed up for relevant conferences to jump-start that goal.

I could have been more strategic by taking advantage of foreign healthcare

I was so consumed with the tasks of cleaning out my flat, closing my accounts, and saying goodbye to friends that health was the last thing on my mind.

However, I wish I'd capitalized on booking doctors' appointments when they were more affordable abroad, as it's taken a long time to get set up with healthcare now that I'm back in the US.

It would've been helpful to have more realistic expectations about starting over

Maybe in a perfect world, I would have returned to the US with a job lined up, an affordable one-bedroom apartment in the city, and a group of old friends with open schedules. But that wasn't the case for me.

Seeing other expats' stories about returning home on social media made it look like these things fall into place quickly, and I struggled with feelings of shame and inadequacy for not achieving that right away.

But looking back over this year, I've made quiet, steady progress that has set me up for a stronger future.

I've supported my physical and mental health through training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and I've built a travel writing portfolio by landing a press trip and writing other articles.

Step by step, I'm reaching my goals, and I'm proud.