02/01/2026
Living in the States was always my dream. From visiting Florida as a child, to spending summers as a camp counselor in the Adirondacks and New Hampshire, to becoming a nanny in Paris and then being told we were moving to LA.
And LA delivered. Fellow Brits, red carpet parties, movie premieres, star-studded breakfasts, private jets, mansions, and moments that still feel surreal to say out loud. I built a life I never thought I’d live.
Then it ended.
Everything went into storage with the hope of returning, but instead I came back to the UK with just a couple of bags and a broken heart. The American dream was over. The tears eventually dried, but the sadness lingered.
And yet… walking away gave me everything I never could have planned. I met my other half. We bought a house during COVID. We rescued our little girl. I retrained as a swim teacher and found a job I genuinely love.
Sometimes the path we’re on looks exactly like the dream we asked for, but it was never meant to be our final destination. Sometimes we don’t realise we’re lost until life forces us to stop.
Rebuilding is hard. Starting again is scary. But we’re stronger than we think.
Not all stories end the way we imagined, but we’re allowed to rewrite the next chapter. Bigger. Better. More aligned.
So if you’re scared of the unknown or afraid to walk away, just know this: you’re not alone. Many of us have walked that dark road. And I promise, there are brighter skies and sunny days ahead.
