Rootless in Exile: The Silent Weight of Homesickness

Migration often begins with hope—new opportunities, safety, or the promise of a better life. Yet alongside this promise comes a quieter, heavier feeling: a sense of rootlessness.

Many migrants describe it as carrying life in a suitcase. Even after years in a new country, there may be an invisible sensation of floating—of not fully belonging to the ground beneath one’s feet. This feeling is not simply nostalgia; it is the echo of being torn away from familiar soil, language, and cultural rhythms that once gave shape to identity.

In psychoanalytic terms, home is more than a physical place. It is an inner landscape, formed by childhood memories, smells, voices, and gestures that unconsciously anchor us. When those anchors are cut, the psyche may drift. Some people feel this as loneliness; others as a constant restlessness, or even a kind of numbness; feelings that can be found in the state of Rootless in exile.

The challenge of rootlessness often reawakens earlier experiences. If, as children, we felt unsafe or unsupported, the rupture of migration may intensify those old wounds. A person may suddenly find themselves struggling with anxiety, depression, or an unexplained sense of being “out of place,” not only geographically but also emotionally.

And yet, the feeling of being rootless is not only a wound. It is also a possibility. To be “without roots” can invite us to grow new ones—to create belonging not from soil but from relationships, creativity, and inner resilience. Therapy can help illuminate these unconscious dynamics, allowing the migrant to mourn what was lost and, at the same time, to imagine what can be planted anew.

If you find yourself living with this quiet sense of disconnection, know that you are not alone. Exploring these feelings in a therapeutic space may help transform exile into a more grounded, authentic way of being.

If this resonates with your own journey, I would be glad to explore these experiences together in a session.