The night before a move, you can’t sleep. The first days in a new place, you feel tense, check your phone constantly, and every small problem feels big. After a week or two it settles – until the next move.
Many nomads know this cycle. It has a simple explanation: your brain treats the unknown as a potential threat.
What is going on
Before the move, your mind runs ahead: what if the apartment is not like the photos, what if I can’t find a place to work, what if something goes wrong at the border? This is anticipatory anxiety – the worry arrives long before the event. (Anticipatory Anxiety)
Once you arrive, everything is new: the streets, the language, the prices, the rules. Your nervous system stays in “scan mode” until it has enough information to feel safe again. That costs a lot of energy, which is why the first days are so tiring. (Fear of the Unknown)
The cycle that keeps it going
- A move or a new place comes up.
- Your mind fills the unknown with worst-case scenarios.
- You prepare too much, check too much, or avoid going out.
- The anxiety eases a little – which teaches your brain that checking and avoiding “work”.
- Next move, the worry starts even earlier.
If you notice that your thoughts jump straight to the worst outcome, the sheet Catastrophising About the Future can help.
What helps you land faster
- Write the worry down, then the realistic version. “I won’t find anywhere to work” → “There are three coworkings within 15 minutes; worst case I work from the apartment for a day.”
- Plan the first 48 hours only. Where you sleep, where you eat, how you get there. Leave the rest open.
- Create an arrival routine. The same small steps in every new place: unpack fully, buy groceries, find your café, walk the neighbourhood. Familiar actions tell your brain it is safe.
- Limit the checking. Set a time for planning, then stop. More research rarely brings more calm.
- Move your body. A walk on the first day helps your nervous system come down from alert mode.
- Notice the pattern after a move. How long did it take to settle last time? Remembering that it passed helps the next time.
If the anxiety stops you from doing things you want to do, or doesn’t ease after the first weeks, it’s worth working on it with someone. (Excessive Worry (Rumination))
