Resources for field staff: Re-entry

Help friends and family support you

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Just as humanitarian workers encounter stress when arriving at a new post in the field, the transition to life "at home" can be a complex and difficult process. Returning field staff face a variety of stressors, such as anxiety over leaving behind friends and relations in the field, or feelings of alienation and reverse culture shock. As the end of your assignment draws near, it is worth considering these issues as well as the emotional support system available to you back in your home community.

Upon your return from the field, friends, family, and others can play a key role in helping you make the transition. In some cases, they will intuitively know how to help—some may even have made similar returns themselves in the past, offering them critical insight. In other cases, however, they will need some guidance in terms of how to support you appropriately. This is particularly true in the event that you have experienced a traumatic critical incident or generalized stress. Those who know you best won't necessarily be able to relate to such an experience, and it can be difficult for them to know how best to approach you about it.

It is worth noting that you should also stay in touch with the organization with which you worked or volunteered, as it may be able to provide you with additional resources. Depending on the circumstances of your return, there may be different types of support (peer listening or professional counseling, for example) for which your friends and family are entirely unprepared. The following resources can help orient both you and your family and friends in these situations.

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