Why So Many Expats Get Sick After Moving Abroad

A story about immune systems, adjustment, and my unforgettable first six months in France

There are parts of expat life you can prepare for. You can research the culture, practice the language, look up the best neighborhoods, and memorize which metro line goes where. You can pack the right shoes, the right adapters, and the right notebook for your first café journaling session abroad. But no one warns you about one of the most universal expat experiences: the complete and total collapse of your immune system the moment your plane touches down.

When I moved to France twenty-five years ago, I thought I was ready. I knew things would feel different. I expected homesickness. I expected language struggles. I expected to stand in front of the cheese counter pretending like I knew what I was doing. What I did not expect was to spend the first six months of my new life abroad feeling like I was starring in my own medical drama.

It began with a cold. A simple cold that I assumed would pass in a few days. Instead, it lingered long enough for me to start wondering if I was allergic to France. By the time the cold finally went away, something else arrived right behind it. A sinus infection. Then the flu. Then bronchitis. Then a fever that came out of nowhere while I was trying to get to my morning language class. Then a stomach bug that made me question every piece of cheese I had ever eaten. If a virus passed within fifty meters of me, it seemed to leap onto my body out of sheer enthusiasm.

For half a year, I was collecting French illnesses like souvenirs. While other students were collecting postcards and key chains, I was collecting scarves, tissue boxes, and new varieties of throat lozenges. I went through a phase where I kept buying different brands of cold medicine because surely one of them had to work better than the rest. I learned how to say “I’m sick again” in French long before I learned how to ask for directions. My local pharmacist knew my face so well that she started recommending things to me the moment I walked in. She didn’t even need to ask what was wrong. I think she could tell from the way I was breathing and the fact that I was clutching my scarf like it was a life preserver.

Now, with twenty-five years of hindsight, I can see the humor in all of this because it turns out a lot of expats get sick after moving abroad. (I had no idea just how normal that was until much later.) But at the time, it felt like my body was staging a full-scale protest. For the first twenty-four years of my life, I had been exposed to what I lovingly call “the American germ library.” Suddenly, I was being introduced to an entirely new European collection, and my immune system was not ready for the cultural exchange. It felt like it needed to shake hands with every European virus individually before it would allow me to settle in.

Looking back, I realize that period taught me more about expat life than I understood at the time. Because being sick for that long is not just a physical experience. It’s an emotional one. When you are trying to build a new life abroad, constant illness has a way of stirring up everything you thought you had under control. You start to question your resilience. You question whether you made the right decision moving across the world. It makes you homesick for things you never thought you’d miss. Super-soft tissues. Chicken soup made the way you grew up eating it. Your mom’s voice telling you to rest. Even the comfort of knowing which cold medicine actually works.

Feeling sick abroad can make you feel small in ways you don’t expect. You suddenly notice how far away you are from everything familiar. You feel more vulnerable. You feel a little out of place. You feel like the world around you is moving too quickly while you are stuck in bed with a box of tissues and a fading sense of optimism. And because your energy is low, your emotions sit closer to the surface. Homesickness hits harder. Loneliness feels heavier. Everything feels just a bit more personal.

What I didn’t understand at the time was that my immune system was doing what every expat does during the first year abroad. It was learning. Adjusting. Figuring things out one uncomfortable moment at a time. It was overwhelmed, but it was trying. The same way I was overwhelmed, but trying. The same way every expat is overwhelmed, but trying.

That six-month period was my initiation into expat life. It taught me that adjusting to a new country is not just a mental or emotional experience. It is a physical one. Your body goes through its own version of culture shock. It has to meet new bacteria, new air, new food, new routines, and a whole new climate. It takes its time figuring out how to live in a new environment. And while that’s happening, you often feel run-down, tired, and a little out of it.

The funny thing is that after those six months, the constant cycle of illness stopped, almost overnight. It was as if my immune system finally stamped its passport and said, “Alright, I live here now.” Finally, I wasn’t catching every passing germ. I wasn’t spending every weekend with tissues stuffed inside my coat pocket. I could breathe again. I could taste my food again. I could go to class without worrying about whether I would have a coughing fit in the middle of a conjugation exercise.

And somewhere in all of this, something else had shifted. I had changed too. I didn’t notice it at the time because I was too busy buying cough syrup and dragging myself to class, but those months were shaping me. I was learning how to take care of myself without the safety net I had back home. I was learning to be patient with myself, even when I was frustrated. I was learning that starting over is messy in every possible way, but I was adjusting in spite of it all.

Now, all these years later, I can still remember those first months in France. I can remember the exhaustion. I can remember the confusion. I can remember the embarrassment of coughing so loudly in a silent room that someone handed me a mint. I can remember the pharmacist telling me that yes, this often happens to people when they move abroad.

And I can also remember the feeling of finally turning the corner. The day I woke up and realized that I didn’t feel sick. The day I walked outside without a pack of tissues in my bag. The day I finally felt like I belonged in the hustle and bustle of my new city, instead of being dragged along behind it. That feeling stayed with me.

The truth is, every expat has their own version of this story. Maybe it’s not illness. Maybe it’s insomnia, anxiety, or waves of emotion you didn’t see coming. Moving abroad always brings a physical reaction. Your system reacts before your mind catches up. Your body tells the truth before you can put it into words. And while it can feel discouraging in the moment, there is something strangely comforting about knowing this is part of the process.

Your body is adjusting to your new life, just as much as you are.

And the good news? It doesn’t last forever. Your system adapts. It finds its footing. It figures things out, just like you do.

So if you’re in that stage now, where you feel like your body is sabotaging your adventure abroad, I hope this brings you a little comfort. It won’t always feel like this. One day, you’ll look back and think, “That was rough, but I made it through.” And you’ll probably even laugh about how many scarves and cold medicines you collected along the way.

Twenty-five years later, I’m grateful for those chaotic months because they taught me resilience I didn’t know I had. They showed me that adjustment doesn’t happen in a straight line. They reminded me that beginnings are hard for everyone, even if no one talks about it. And they left me with the best scarf collection on earth.

Wherever you are in your own expat journey, know this: your body is doing its best to help you settle in. And just like every expat who has come before you, you’ll find your balance too.

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If reading this brought back your own memories of adjusting to a new country…the tired days, the confusing emotions, the moments when everything felt a bit too close to the surface…you’re in good company :)

I help expat women find balance and clarity in seasons like this through my 1:1 integrative wellness and life transition coaching. If you’re looking for support as you settle into your life abroad, visit ThriveOnThrough to book a free 20-minute discovery call today.

And for daily encouragement and expat support, you can find me on Facebook & Instagram.