During the pandemic, Americans were on the move. Many moved to be closer to family. Others moved because they were working remotely and could choose locations with a lower cost of living. But what if you can’t move? What if you’re anchored to your town because of a job or family, but you’re unhappy where you live? What options do you have then?
What to Do If You’re Unhappy Where You Live
If you’re unhappy where you live but can’t move immediately, there are several things you can do to try to improve your current living arrangement and mental state.
Determine Why You Dislike Your Location
What do you dislike about your current location? Is there too much crime? Do you want to live near the beach but instead you live in the Midwest?
In my case, I moved to Arizona seven years ago from the Midwest. Each summer, when temps regularly rise above 100 degrees and humidity increases in June and July during monsoon season, I find myself more miserable than the summer before. The intense heat is one of the main reasons I’ve grown to dislike Arizona.
Try to Improve What You Dislike
Once you identify what you don’t like about your location, see what you can do to improve your situation. If you live in a location with too much crime, can you volunteer somewhere that will make a difference? Maybe you could become a Big Brother or Big Sister? Maybe you could help at a homeless shelter? Sometimes, taking action can help make our situation more bearable.
My husband and I examined my dislike of Arizona this spring. While I can’t change the intense heat, we did decide to pay a little more for electricity so we could turn the air conditioning down lower. We also invested in black-out curtains to make our bedroom cooler.
Make Time to Travel Where You Want to Be
If there is someplace specific you’d rather be, try to vacation there. For instance, I miss family in the Midwest, so my husband and I are prioritizing saving money to visit family once a year. If you long to be by the beach, book yearly vacations there so you can at least visit the beach until you have the means to live there full time.
List All the Benefits of Being Where You Are
In addition to improving your living situation and regularly visiting where you’d like to be, also take the time to improve your attitude. Make a list of all the benefits of being where you are. For instance, while Arizona isn’t where I want to be right now, there are tens of millions of visitors who flock here every year, so this is a desirable place for many.
Take the time to really think of all the benefits where you are. Is the cost of living cheap? Do you have a good job that pays well? Are you surrounded by nature? Or are you near a big city where you can experience all of the cultural events? Making this list can help you see that while your current location may not be where you want to be, there are still benefits to living there.
Final Thoughts
If you work hard enough and are patient, you can likely move within a few years to where you want to be. Until you can, take these steps to make where you currently live more bearable.
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Melissa Batai
Melissa is a writer and virtual assistant. She earned her Master’s from Southern Illinois University, and her Bachelor’s in English from the University of Michigan. When she’s not working, you can find her reading a good book, cooking, or traveling. She resides in New York where she loves the natural beauty of the area.
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