expat psychology

Displacement does not end with the generation that moved. It travels, often silently, carried by children who never knew they were holding something that was never originally theirs. A psychologist's perspective on inherited grief, the parentified child, and what genuine integration actually requires.

Identity is not a fixed internal object. It is relational, contextual, and held partly in place by the people and environments around us. When you relocate, that entire architecture is dismantled almost overnight. Which goes some way to explaining why so many people find themselves, at some point after a move, not quite recognising who they are being.