35 Surprising Moments Americans Experienced After Living Abroad And Returning Home

Living abroad can change your perspective on the world—and sometimes, coming back home can feel like a whole new experience. A Reddit thread recently asked Americans who have lived abroad, “What was your biggest reverse culture shock upon returning to the U.S.?” The answers highlighted just how starkly different life in the U.S. can feel after living in another country. Here are some of the most eye-opening responses.

#1

Image source: ruacommode, freepik

The scam that is the for-profit healthcare system in the US. Truly pathetic that the richest country in human history can’t provide universal coverage for all its citizens. Medical bills, medical debt, insurers deciding which procedures you really need, doctors and hospitals being in/out of network….all foreign concepts to most developed countries.

We talk a lot about freedom in the US, but it’s usually about positive freedoms (i.e. the freedom TO own a gun) but we forget about negative freedoms, the freedom FROM something, such as medical debt, student debt, etc. In that sense, we lack many basic freedoms enjoyed by other countries.

#2

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After returning from living in India, I woke up parched one morning and realized that I didn’t have any bottled water in the house. I got all distressed because it was early and stores weren’t open and it was cold and dark…imagine my joy when I remembered I had potable water FLOWING INTO MY HOUSE.

#3

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The food! Lived in Canada from 2006 to 2014. You don’t really notice it going the other way, but coming back holy s**t. Everything is loaded with salt and sugar. Everything. It is jarring. I gained over 20 lbs my first year back. I get that people do not want to hear this because we all love our dino nuggets and cheap frozen pizza. But damn, they really are trying to kill us with our food. At the very least they truly do not care if they kill us so long as the profit margins are high.

Related to that, the sheer number of truly obese people. Kids, in particular. I lived in Toronto and it was incredibly rare to see a person who clearly weighed over 300 lbs. Like maybe once a year. Coming back it was just shocking how big the average American had become. I pretty much lay that at the feet of the food thing.

#4

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In the US, if I suggest we walk the five blocks to our destination on a beautiful, sunny day, I’m met with incredulity, outrage, and a glare appropriate for puppy torturers.

Walking as transport is, apparently, a sign of homelessness and failure at life. .

#5

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Coming back from Norway, I was shocked at how little paid time off Americans get. Had to readjust to the whole ‘living to work’ mentality instead of ‘working to live.’ Still bugs me.

#6

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Tipping. I lived abroad for a while and my first day back in the US, I just genuinely forgot to tip a bartender on a single beer and she told people at the bar that I stiffed her. It’s such a ridiculous system.

#7

Image source: fingerofchicken, shurkin_son / freepik

After many years in Europe:

How many more overweight people there are.

How many churches there are.

How Americans assume everyone wants to hear their opinion.

How little we value being informed or educated in order to have a strong opinion.

#8

Image source: Shauney, DC Studio / freepik

Returned to the US from Korea. It gets talked about all the time, but just how unnecessarily complicated and inconvenient our healthcare system is.

To go from a system where you can go see a doctor/specialist any day of the week without an appointment, to know you will be covered, and to have the peace of mind that you’ll spend probably less than $20, to then go to whatever we have here…it’s just absurd to me.

I also pay twice for my healthcare here than I did in Korea. We are so duped for a system that is openly robbing us and not keeping us well.

#9

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Taxes not being included in price on the sign.

#10

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Seeing how obvious it is that we have a serious obesity problem in the U.S.

#11

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Pharmaceutical commercials on TV was the most shocking. Smiling happy people talking about taking a pill to counteract the pill they were taking for (insert issue). Side effects may include mass m*rder, jumping from bridges, and uncontrollable diarrhea… At least you’ll be smiling while you deal with all the side effects.

#12

Image source: Mcgoobz3, EyeEm / freepik

Having to drive everywhere. Dublin isn’t the most bike friendly place, but living there for several years and being able to hop on my bike and get across town in 20 minutes is something I will always miss. After being back in Illinois for 2 years I still hate that I have to drive 2 miles to target bc that’s the only option for getting there and home in one piece

ETA: at no point did I say I live in Chicago. I don’t have city public transit and resources, thus my comment.

#13

Image source: banoctopus, asphotostudio / freepik

Had a layover in Salt Lake City on my way home from living in China for six months… “How did all these people get permission to have so many children?!? Oh…right.”.

#14

Image source: AuroraLiberty, freepik

All the sugar in the food.

#15

The lack of public gathering spaces. I tried sitting on a bench for more than 5 minutes in a park and a police officer came to “check up” on me

Edit; to me he acted hostile while asking for some “more information “.

Image source: TheFriendlyAmazon

#16

Coming back from Germany / Europe and the customer service at US restaurants was SO intrusive and annoying. You cannot just sit and enjoy a meal with someone, you are constantly interrupted while talking, and while mid-chew. How is everything? Doing alright? Can I get you another drink? Etc. I get that some people like this type of service because they’re used to or expect it, but it annoyed me to no end how the server constantly interrupted my meal.

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#17

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It took me a second to remember that 1st floor is ground/lobby floor here every time I got in an elevator for a few weeks.

#18

Lived in Baden Württemberg Germany, when I returned I realized how awful our bakeries are. Also I realized how much grass we mow around public roads. In Germany they just let it grow out.

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#19

Prescription d**g commercials and strip malls, two things I never missed.

Image source: Tallanasty

#20

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Moved from Singapore then back to the US.

Three biggest shocks

1) Unlike Singapore, I can’t expect everyone to know English in California
2) An American striking a random conversation is normal
3) Mexican food is the most American food around.

#21

Visiting a grocery shop and feeling overpowered by the sheer number of possibilities available for each and every item. How many varieties of ketchup do we actually need, really?

Image source: WhisperingWhisperss

#22

How poorly Americans dress. Massively oversized (or sometimes undersized) shirts / pants, graphic tees / sports jerseys, sweatpants and hoodies everywhere. Coming back home from Scandinavia was eye opening. I now buy clothes that actually fit and make an effort to not look like I rolled out of bed.

Image source: CriticalSea540

#23

America feels like a bubble on another planet, American culture just feels so separated from every other group of people on the planet and the American zeitgeist is very isolationist.

Image source: anocelotsosloppy

#24

Two things were hard to get reacquainted with. One was that I had to start driving every day again. The other was that Americans really are a special level of fat. “Normal” fat Americans looked like spectacles to me for a few weeks even though I had lived here for most of my life.

Image source: oeeiae

#25

Image source: MrMeatScience, Yaroslav Danylchenko / freepik

I grew up in the US but have spent my whole adult life in the UK and Austria. There are so many unique or nearly unique things about the US.

Everything in the US is huge. I’m in the US this week and just visited a friend in Chicago — she was apologising for a cramped flat, but it was palatial by middle-class western Euro standards. Only thing we’ve got on Americans in that department is super high ceilings. It applies to food too, of course. I just saw a pack of Reese’s cups at Target that was more than a meter high. Diabolical.

Lots of stuff is super sweet when it shouldn’t be. Coffee, bread (!), sauces. It’s kind of icky once you start noticing it.

Especially in Austria shops and offices have very limited hours by comparison. I forget this sometimes and find myself planning around not being able to get anything on Sundays or after about 19.00.

Tip culture as it is in the States wouldn’t be tolerated in Austria (the UK is *slightly* closer to the American model but not much). They’re quite forward in asking for it (it should of course be given, but it ought to be presented like a choice, IMO).

“No guns” signs on business doors. That’s a stark reminder when you’ve been away.

This probably runs counter to the common narrative, but I find lots of Americans are quite rude, in that they’re not really aware of other people around them. Flying in this week I was shocked by the fact that people just splay their stuff out on an escalator and block the path. You’re supposed to stand on the right side and leave the left lane open for people in a hurry. There’s also stuff like playing music out loud on buses and trains (this happens everywhere but seems more common in the US).

The amount of space given over to cars. There are so many parking garages, it’s a ridiculous waste of space and they’re invariably ugly as sin. We have them in Europe but not as many and at least in the big cities they’re generally subterranean.

#26

Image source: BubbhaJebus, freepik

Not being able to just go to the doctor when you feel sick or notice something wrong. In Taiwan you just rock up to the hospital, pay a US$6 registration fee, tell the registrar what ails ya, get sent to whichever department fits your symptoms, wait for an hour or so, and see a doc.

Government healthcare: hell to the YEAH! It’s not communism, Americans.

#27

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After being In India for a while, coming back to the USA, the feeling of having personal space and not being stared at all the time, such a relief.

#28

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Coming back to the US after living in Japan for 7 years. Everyone seems so angry and selfish all the time. Public places like parks, streets, restrooms are just a disgusting mess that no one takes care of.

Also, groceries were super cheap and fresh. I could get a weeks worth of groceries for a family of 3 for around ¥10000 yen, that’s not possible in the US.

#29

Image source: jerwong, ayuluthfiani / freepik

Returned to the US from India. Sat down to eat at a restaurant at the airport and the waiter immediately brought me a glass of ice water. It took me a moment to realize that this was safe to drink here.

#30

Image source: theguineapigssong, DC Studio / freepik

Going from Japan customer service to US customer service is a colossal downgrade.

#31

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Depending on where you lived abroad, the return to car culture is probably going to be the biggest shock. Get ready to drive everywhere again.

#32

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The massive amount of advertising and upsells. As soon as you get on a plane back to the US, it’s all “sign up for this credit card” and “watch these ads before and after the safety briefing” and “you can pay later for all this, no payments today.”

It absolutely screams into your brain at every opportunity.

#33

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Was floored by the massive portion sizes when I came back. Also, people are super chatty here compared to Germany! It felt weird at first, but now I kind of enjoy those random small talk moments with strangers.

#34

How uncommon it is seeing people smoking cigarettes in the US.

Image source: labrats21

#35

Image source: Albinkiiii, andrealopezro95 / freepik

How huge everything is. The flags, the people, the portion sizes.