The Good Expat Life

28/02/2026

𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧/𝐃𝐢𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐜𝐞 – 𝐄𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬

Separation in international life often carries extra layers:

🌍 loss of place
👤 identity shifts
📦 practical uncertainty
💔 grief mixed with relief or fear
It’s rarely just one feeling — it’s a process.

I’ve written more about these emotional phases in a gentle, supportive way here:
👉 https://www.thegoodexpatlife.com/post/divorcing-abroad-and-what-is-a-stuck-parent

If this topic touches you, you’re not alone; and support matters.

Expat life can be testing on any marriage, and studies show that nearly 70% of all failed international assignments are due to “marital breakdown”. Breaking up a marriage is always an emotional challenge, and the reasons may vary from having grown apart or having different life goals to infideli...

23/02/2026

𝐎𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞, 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. 𝐈 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐥, 𝐛𝐢𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐤𝐢𝐝𝐬, 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐲 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐧𝐞𝐫’𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐝𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐨𝐧.

On the inside? I was lonely. Homesick. Struggling to find a true sense of belonging.

This contrast is something many expats live with. Outward success, inward isolation.

It wasn’t until I did the therapeutic work on my attachment style that I began to feel at home — not just in a country, but in myself.

✨ That’s what my course 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 & 𝐀𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 is designed to help expats achieve: belonging that comes from within.

👉 Details here: https://www.thegoodexpatlife.com/attachment-style-course

✨ I’m Henriette Johnsen, a bilingual psychotherapist and couples counsellor. As a former three-times expat, I know both the excitement and the challenges of international life.

Today, I help expats strengthen their mental health and relationships so they can feel grounded, connected, and truly thrive anywhere in the world. Follow me for tips!

Alternatively, contact me for therapy – or, if you aren’t looking for therapy, 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 & 𝐀𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝, my online attachment style course is perfect for you if you are looking for more self-awareness, a stronger sense of identity and belonging, as well as having your attachment style reprogrammed for better, safer, and more meaningful relationships ✨

20/02/2026

𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧.

I know this not only from my work as a therapist, but from my own expat journey – including the years I spent in London.

You build a life.
You function well.
And yet parts of you feel different:

A little more sensitive.
A little less anchored.
A little more in need of a place where you can simply be.

For international couples, I often see how this becomes part of the relationship too:

Two cultures.
Two ways of expressing love.
Two ideas of home.

What you need in therapy at that point is not only tools. You need to feel understood in the full complexity of your life.

This is the space I aim to offer to expats, individuals, and mixed-nationality couples.

If you are in that place and feel that this speaks to you, you are always welcome to send me a message or book an initial conversation - I would love to help you lead a good expat life!

You will find the link to my contact details in the comments.

17/02/2026

I cannot yet reveal what I will be talking about, but do check out this event in May - a wonderful opportunity to learn from expat women who have made bold moves across the globe 🤩

And please share this post if you know of anyone in your network who might be interested in listening in!

Last year she sponsored the Summit.



This year she returns as a speaker and as a member of The Expat Woman Membership.

Meet our first confirmed speaker for The Expat Woman Summit 2026: Henriette Johnsen

A Danish-born, UK-trained psychotherapist and couples counsellor, Henriette specializes in attachment and expat relationships.

Often called “the therapist for the passport people,” she helps internationally mobile individuals and couples build emotional safety, strengthen communication, and create more secure, supportive relationships wherever life takes them.

She is also an active member of The Expat Woman Membership - our private network of globally mobile women building careers, businesses, and leadership abroad.

When I asked Henriette what being part of The Expat Woman has meant to her, she shared:

“Being part of The Expat Woman Membership has given me a meaningful space to connect with other internationally minded women and learn from their diverse experiences of building lives and careers abroad.

The community has encouraged me to step outside my comfort zone, particularly around speaking more publicly and sharing my work more visibly. Having a place to exchange ideas, perspectives, and encouragement with fellow expat women has been both grounding and professionally inspiring.”

This is exactly why we built The Expat Woman Membership.

Women building lives abroad.

Encouraging each other.

Stepping into visibility.

Sharing their voice.

Stay tuned for what Henriette will be speaking about - her session will resonate deeply with anyone navigating relationships across borders.

Our 2026 speakers include members of The Expat Woman Membership, expat leaders, women who have made bold moves abroad, service providers, and sponsors who believe in supporting globally mobile women.

Want to attend this free, virtual, global summit? Add your name to the waitlist at this link: theexpatwoman.com/summit

Want to join The Expat Woman Membership - learn more and join us here: theexpatwoman.com/membership

05/02/2026

🌟 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐲𝐥𝐞 - 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐲 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 (𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥) 🌟

Join this FREE WEBINAR on 4th March 2026, where you’ll learn how your attachment style shapes your relationships, your sense of self, and your emotional well-being.

In this webinar, you will:

🧠 Learn about the 4 attachment styles and how they’re formed
🔍 Begin to identify your own attachment style
🌍 Understand why expat life can amplify anxiety, loneliness, or relationship struggles
✈️ Hear about my own expat journey and the transformation that followed
🌱 Learn how to start working with your attachment style to build healthier relationships –
anywhere in the world

This session is ideal for expats who feel stuck, disconnected, or curious about personal growth and emotional resilience.
📅 4. marts | 3.30pm CET
🎟️ Free webinar
🔗 Register here: https://www.thegoodexpatlife.com/webinar

If you can’t make it to the live session, no worries –everyone who signs up will receive the replay link.

03/02/2026

🌍 𝐅𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞: 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩𝐬 & 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞

Living internationally can grow us in beautiful ways, but it can also stretch our relationships in ways we never expected.

This month, I’ll be sharing reflections and psychological insights into the real relationship challenges many expat and international couples face:

💬 cultural communication differences
🏠 conflicts about “going home”
💞 staying emotionally connected through constant change
🌐 family expectations across borders

Most of these conversations will happen inside my Facebook group — a supportive space for expats navigating emotional and relational life abroad.

💛 If you're living internationally (or have before), you are warmly welcome to join us. It's free, and you will find the link in the comments.

I’d love to hear here first: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭’𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 — 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐞?

01/02/2026

𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞 — 𝐢𝐭 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 🌍

I’ve felt this in my own expat life at times when I didn’t quite recognise myself. I hesitated more, felt unexpectedly emotional, made choices out of character, and missed the parts of me that once felt effortless.

This was particularly pronounced during times of crisis, like going through a divorce 💔. But it also showed up in everyday moments: trying to make friends, making small talk with other parents during school runs, and generally finding my feet in a culture that didn’t seem that different from my own, yet felt surprisingly different once you got beneath the surface. Beneath it all, I was carrying much more than I realised.

As my January self-care theme highlighted, many expats carry an invisible emotional load 🎒: constantly adapting, adjusting, and reshaping parts of themselves to fit a new culture. Alongside growth 🌱, there can also be a quiet kind of grief for familiar ways of being that no longer feel as accessible.

Nothing has gone wrong. It simply means something meaningful is shifting 🔄. I only really understood this in hindsight. Revisiting my own experiences while creating January’s content brought up reflections around identity shifts and identity grief, which inspired me to write another blog post exploring identity abroad.

I find this topic fascinating, and few things feel more meaningful in my clinical work than supporting someone in integrating who they were with who they are becoming through expat life 🤍

If you’re curious about identity shifts, identity grief, and identity integration in expat life, you can read my latest blog post here 📖 https://www.thegoodexpatlife.com/da/post/identity-shifts-abroad-and-identity-grief-in-expat-life-invisible-emotional-labour

And if it resonates, I’d love to hear your reflections on how living abroad has shaped your own sense of self 💬✨

Identity shifts, identity grief, and integration abroadLiving abroad is often described as exciting, enriching, and full of opportunity. And it can be all of that. At the same time, it can quietly challenge your sense of who you are and where you feel at home. For many expats, the experience also br...

31/01/2026

As a therapist, I often meet clients who are struggling with identity issues as well as emotional and cognitive overload from the challenges of expat life – both visible and not so visible. Therefore, I decided to post about the invisible emotional load of expat life.

Sustainable expat wellbeing is not about “coping better.”

It’s about reducing unnecessary strain, building supportive routines, and acknowledging the emotional reality of global mobility. And about building and having a supportive network.

The invisible load becomes lighter when we stop expecting ourselves to carry it alone.

Lightening your expat load doesn’t require huge changes.

Tiny, consistent practices make the biggest difference:

💠 Create one daily ritual that grounds you
💠 Let yourself rest even when others don’t see your fatigue
💠 Build “pockets of familiarity” (foods, routines, music)
💠 Allow feelings instead of suppressing them
💠 Reach out for support earlier rather than later

Before we move on, take a moment to ask yourself:
💠“What do I need more of?”
💠“What can I let go of?”

You’re doing better than you think. And if not, you are welcome to contact me at henriette@thegoodexpatlife.com for a 25-mins, non-binding consultation to hear how I can help you navigate the waters of expat life.

✨ I’m Henriette Johnsen, a bilingual psychotherapist and couples counsellor. As a former three-times expat, I know both the excitement and the challenges of international life.

Today, I help expats strengthen their mental health and relationships so they can feel grounded, connected, and truly thrive anywhere in the world. Follow me for tips!

Alternatively, contact me for therapy – or, if you aren’t looking for therapy, 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 & 𝐀𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝, my online attachment style course is perfect for you if you are looking for more self-awareness, a stronger sense of identity and belonging, as well as having your attachment style reprogrammed for better, safer, and more meaningful relationships ✨

30/01/2026

𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞: a new country, new experiences, a brave life choice. Yet behind the photos and the stories, many expats carry a quiet, invisible tiredness that’s hard to put into words.

I know this both personally and professionally. Having lived abroad several times myself, and now working as a psychotherapist with expats around the world, I see how much emotional and mental energy goes into adapting, fitting in, and holding two worlds in your heart at once.

At the time, I thought I just needed to try harder. I didn't know that this exhaustion isn’t a personal failing, but a natural response to constant adaptation, emotional labour, and living between worlds. Now, in wonderful hindsight, I understand how constantly living in a state of adaptation was quietly taxing my nervous system.

In this blog post, I name the hidden emotional load of expat life, the constant adjusting, the pressure to cope, the decision fatigue, and I offer gentle ways to support yourself. If you’ve been feeling more exhausted than you “should” be, I hope this helps you feel seen, understood, and a little less alone 💛

You will find the blog post here 👉

Living abroad is frequently described as an adventure: an opportunity to broaden your horizons, explore new cultures, and create a life beyond your previous imagination. While this is often the case, there is an aspect of expatriate life that is seldom discussed openly: the hidden emotional burden t...

28/01/2026

Living abroad stretches us in so many ways: new culture, new systems, new identity… And often, new emotional reactions we didn’t expect.

In my recent conversation with Nyna, founder of The Expat Woman, we talked about something that comes up again and again in my work with expats:

𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬 𝐒𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐲: 𝐀𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐭𝐲𝐥𝐞𝐬 & 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐭 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞

When everything feels unfamiliar, our nervous system looks for safety – and that’s often when old relational patterns show up more strongly. We might feel more anxious, more withdrawn, more sensitive, or more alone than we’re used to. There’s nothing “wrong” with us: It’s our attachment system doing its job in a new and uncertain environment.

In the interview, I also share a bit about my own attachment journey and how my personal experiences shaped the work I now do with individuals and couples navigating life across cultures.

If you’ve ever wondered why moving abroad can feel emotionally intense in ways you didn’t expect, this conversation might really resonate with you.

🎥 Watch the interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riBD8LMZXn4

I’d love to hear what parts spoke to you.

Whenever we step out of our comfort zones and undergo transitions like moving abroad, our old wounds and traumas have a field day. They often resurface as we...

22/01/2026

🌏 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬

Expat life can quietly affect how you feel about yourself and how you relate to the people closest to you.

You might feel anxious, disconnected, or notice tension in your relationship that wasn’t there before.

The stress of moving, cultural shifts, the lack of support and structure, as well as changes in your relationships can bring old wounds, unmet needs, and unhealed patterns to the surface – adding to the often invisible emotional load of expat life.

I help expat individuals and couples explore these challenges and find steadier ground again.

UK-trained psychotherapist | Emotionally Focused | Online and in-person sessions available

👉 Learn more: www.thegoodexpatlife.com

05/11/2025

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 🤫

Expat life can be exciting and enriching. And unexpectedly lonely! Despite all the positives and good experiences, you may sometimes ask yourself

✨Why is it so hard to make deep, lasting connections?
✨Why do I feel triggered in my relationship more than I used to?
✨Why do I feel like I’m losing my sense of self?

Well, the truth is: It may be because of your attachment style.

Luckily, attachment styles can change - if you do the work!

My online course, Attached & Abroad - Attachment Style Course for Expats, is specifically designed for expats who want to:

✨ Heal old wounds and learn to regulate your nervous system
✨ Reconnect with your true self and show up more authentically
✨ Create emotional safety in your relationships and build deeper, more sustainable friendships abroad.

The course is self-paced, packed with actionable insight, and based on both theory and my real-world experience as a psychotherapist and former expat.

📌 Learn more here: https://www.thegoodexpatlife.com/attachment-style-course