Australian Flag

When you first move anywhere, especially if you don’t know anyone at your destination, it’s normal to feel lonely. When you’re a mum with young children demanding your attention, lonely isn’t exactly how I’d describe it…but during my early days in Aus I often felt alone.

My husband rightly spent all his time on the job search…applying for roles online, meeting recruiters and prepping for interviews. As we were staying in a small, temporary flat I spent my time keeping the children out of his way, so that he could make phone calls without background squawks and scuffles. It was a testing few months. The children were unsettled, no doubt due to the new environment and Mum and Dad’s frequent exasperation with rude recruitment consultants and slow interview processes.

Of course, establishing a regular family income was the most important thing and a huge responsibility for my husband. Whilst all this was going on my worries remained on the back burner.

In my head I stressed about what area we should live in, once we knew how much we’d be able to spend on rent. I stressed about when and how the kids should start swimming lessons. I stressed about them making friends, missing their extended family, having enough toys, doing enough craft activities etc. etc. All of this mum stuff I bore alone…my husband, at the best of times, finds much of my mum worry over the top, but during these challenging times it simply wasn’t fair to share.

Thanks to the friendly Aussie playground and playgroup culture, I soon met like-minded, or similarly-stressed, mummies. If you’re about to make the move or have just arrived and are feeling alone, please take heart…

In a typical year around 53,000 women between the age of 25 and 44 move to Australia.* Of course, not all of them will be mums but they are all on a personal journey of change. They’ll be going through many of the things you are, experiencing the same mistakes, successes and concerns.

It’s obvious that the best way to make friends and find support is to get out there. In fact, that’s the advice I was given by an Aussie mum living in London. “Join playgroups and attend local events,” she recommended, ”People aren’t going to come to you!”