Depression after moving to a new city...normal? (Chicago, Oak Park: houses, movies)

[Swisha2k]

Hello city-data, I recently moved to Chicago from central FL about 2 months ago.
I had no job, family or friends before moving to Chicago but got a job in the city within 3 weeks of moving up here (I've made a few friends also)...


I should be feeling positive about landing the job given the macro-economic situation; however, for the past 2 weeks, I have been feeling a little depressed. Some days, I don't feel like exploring the city and/or meeting new people like I did when I initially moved here. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE this city and the people that I've met are very cordial.

I'm thinking it's my repetitive job duties because I get bored VERY easily...or maybe because I miss my family. I've never felt this way before. Maybe I'll take another route to work to change the scenery.

Is my initial question about depression after moving to a new city normal?
Maybe I'm homesick?

[ERS-One]

Might be homesickness. Is this your first experience living away from Florida? I wouldn't know, but I'd imagine settling into a new environment could be a little discombobulating.

Seek out your interests and the people that share them. Better than moping around at home I'd think.

As to work being the problem - that's quite possible. I've been there, and combined with a new environment, I'm sure it can drain you of your joie de vivre.

Motivate yourself to just go out and do something, anything. It's a surefire way to beat that rat-in-a-cage feeling.

[linicx]

It is always difficult to move far away from family and friends. It makes no difference if the town is wee small or mega-size like Cbicago. I think the feeling sad comes from a feeling of loss. One of the ways I used to combat it was exercize like long leisurely walks. I'd walk 5 miles or housework. There is nothing like a vigorous on your knees cleaning the kitchen floor, rearranging furniture. It is impossible to think of two things at once. Mild depression is usually self-generated and self-cured. Go up to Oak Park and walk the 35 Frank lloyd Wright houses tour. Its the largest collection in the world. Bored? I could always get lost in a library full of great literature. Go to the mall and window shop. I almost alwys found something interesting to investigate.

What you are feeling is temporary.

.

[Lookout Kid]

It definitely takes years, not months to adjust fully to a new city, put down roots, etc. I loved Chicago itself when I first moved here, but it took a while to get the network of friends, professionals, etc. that I needed. And I had the benefit of knowing quite a few people here already.

[hxcobd]

Being new here myself, one thing that instantly boosts my mood is to either head down to River North and walk along the river, or up near Lakeview/Uptown/etc. and walk along the lake. Especially late at night. Maybe it's because I'm originally from coastal places, but seeing as you're from Florida, maybe the water can be of some comfort to you as well.

If you ever want to vent about work or how the midwest sucks*, PM me sometime!

(*I love Chicago, trust me!)

[SJaye]

I think this is fairly normal (as long as it is not dangerous/extreme depression) at this stage in the game because it's been about 2 months since your life fundamentally changed (new city, new job). This is the time when you start to miss some of the things about your old life (before job/ move), whether it be a specific restaurant, a person, an activity, or a running joke. I've had a somewhat sad feeling about 2-4 months into almost every experience I've had in life, even the ones I would later think of as the best experiences in my life. For me it was somewhat different, as I never lost motivation to do things and meet people. I just would get this feeling like I need to do something else (besides what I was doing), maybe like I was getting into a rut.

It seems like when you go through a life change (moving, college to job, new job, single to married, etc.) you spend the first month or so just excited about the newness of it. That will wear off, and then you will actually have to go through the adjustment to your new life, new set of activities, etc. This adjustment can be saddening/ painful or it can just flow naturally--- all of this depends on the person as well as the place and experience. The amount of time it takes to adjust also depends on the person as well as the place and experience, so I can't give you a specific time frame as to when this will end.

However, I would suggest three things to try to make this process end sooner and less painful....
1. Find something new and fun, kind of like a new tradition to replace and old tradition you may be missing.
2. Do something that is somewhat similar to what you used to do in your old situation. For example, if you used to go to movies every Wednesday, go to the movies on Wednesday. No reason to include something that needs not be included in your adjustment process. Same would be for seeing bands, etc.
3. Exercise regularly; I always seem to feel better about anything that is bothering me after a little bit of exercise, especially riding my bike.

[mayorhaggar]

I moved from Winter Park FL (near Orlando) to Chicago about 8 years ago (then moved to San Francisco 6 years ago). I was really excited to get out of FL which I felt was really boring. Chicago is fun because there are always a million things going on especially in summer. Also I found that it's pretty easy to make friends in Chicago because people are pretty gregarious, here in the Bay Area most people seem rather passive and hard to get to know.

I think it is homesickness and eventually you will think of Chicago as your home. Fortunately Chicago is just a 2-3 hour flight to FL which is pretty quick so it will be easy to go home to see friends and relatives. I live in San Francisco now which is at least 6 hours on a pricey flight to Florida and 10-11 hours if you do a layover to save money, which means I get to go home to see my folks rarely.

I would feel lucky that you have a job that lets you live well in a cool city like Chicago, A LOT of people cannot say the same right now unfortunately.

Winter in Chicago can be a bit depressing though if you aren't used to it. It is very dark and very cold for months on end. I never really got depressed, but I would feel tired all winter. Some days I would come home from work and fall asleep for the night at 8pm. Also I would get kind of stir crazy from staying inside all day, when it's 0F outside you kind of don't feel like going out much. But then at some point around March the winter breaks and spring begins which is glorious and you can really feel the city fill up with energy again, and then in summer there are a million things going on because people really don't take the warm weather for granted. You really don't get that in Florida or California which don't really have seasons.

[grapico]

Originally Posted by mayorhaggar

I moved from Winter Park FL (near Orlando) to Chicago about 8 years ago (then moved to San Francisco 6 years ago). I was really excited to get out of FL which I felt was really boring. Chicago is fun because there are always a million things going on especially in summer. Also I found that it's pretty easy to make friends in Chicago because people are pretty gregarious, here in the Bay Area most people seem rather passive and hard to get to know.

I think it is homesickness and eventually you will think of Chicago as your home. Fortunately Chicago is just a 2-3 hour flight to FL which is pretty quick so it will be easy to go home to see friends and relatives. I live in San Francisco now which is at least 6 hours on a pricey flight to Florida and 10-11 hours if you do a layover to save money, which means I get to go home to see my folks rarely.

I would feel lucky that you have a job that lets you live well in a cool city like Chicago, A LOT of people cannot say the same right now unfortunately.

Winter in Chicago can be a bit depressing though if you aren't used to it. It is very dark and very cold for months on end. I never really got depressed, but I would feel tired all winter. Some days I would come home from work and fall asleep for the night at 8pm. Also I would get kind of stir crazy from staying inside all day, when it's 0F outside you kind of don't feel like going out much. But then at some point around March the winter breaks and spring begins which is glorious and you can really feel the city fill up with energy again, and then in summer there are a million things going on because people really don't take the warm weather for granted. You really don't get that in Florida or California which don't really have seasons.

funny, you sound like same pattern as me. I went to Chicago from Florida as well, then out here in the bay.
Everything you say is definitely on point including the weather and the people. I am moving *back* to Chicago though so it obviously isn't that bad.
I haven't really been able to assimilate so to say to out here in the California/Bay Area type lifestyle for some reason either, partly because I shortly didn't consider it a long term option and other factors. It is definitely an improvement over Florida though.
Same thing with family and flights, haven't been out there in over a year now (and vice versa) I could easily get cheap flights before from Chicago though, even driving there was not unheard of, I did it several times.

[s0nginmyheart]

I moved here from L.A. in 2008, knowing about 4 people in Chicago, and up until this Spring, homesickness came in waves... But, after two years I'm (finally) starting to feel less like a fish-out-of-water

[chitown2pa]

Originally Posted by Swisha2k

Hello city-data, I recently moved to Chicago from central FL about 2 months ago.
I had no job, family or friends before moving to Chicago but got a job in the city within 3 weeks of moving up here (I've made a few friends also)...


I should be feeling positive about landing the job given the macro-economic situation; however, for the past 2 weeks, I have been feeling a little depressed. Some days, I don't feel like exploring the city and/or meeting new people like I did when I initially moved here. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE this city and the people that I've met are very cordial.

I'm thinking it's my repetitive job duties because I get bored VERY easily...or maybe because I miss my family. I've never felt this way before. Maybe I'll take another route to work to change the scenery.

Is my initial question about depression after moving to a new city normal?
Maybe I'm homesick?

Totally normal. Depression and paranoia, in my case. When I moved to Harrisburg, PA, I became convince 'they' were out to get me. Not having many friends in the new city aggravates the problem. Social ties keep us grounded. Do you have a social network here yet?