Peace Corps Challenges and Struggles

It is said that Peace Corps is the hardest job you will ever love.  It is true that being a Peace Corps is no piece of cake.  There are so many different things that make the Peace Corps experience hard for a volunteer; ranging from struggling with language to dealing with varied amounts of harassment.

Some varying struggles/challenges that other volunteers have experienced and were willing to share are listed below:

• ·      “Inconsistent internet access/electricity”
• ·      “No vegetables at restaurants on Saturdays through Tuesdays and Thursdays”
• ·      “Sometimes, I feel like I am living back at home when I must communicate when I will be back with the other family that lives in my compound.”
• ·      “Everything is harder – ordering food or drinks, scheduling meetings, traveling, bathing, etc.”
• ·      “I seriously shit my pants at least once or twice a week.  Partly due to the bacteria, partly due to the distance between the shintbet and my house, but mostly because the imbecilic conversance and aplomb nature of competently controlling my own sphincter…” So in other words, having diarrhea on a daily basis.

Each volunteer has such a different experience from any other volunteer.  This is very true when it comes to challenges and struggles.  Despite how much the challenges and struggles vary from person to person, there is a list of things that we all experience and struggle with on some level.

• ·      Language (In Ethiopia there is one of three possible languages you learn based on the Region you will be living in.  Some volunteers live in smaller towns that have local languages that are not taught during pre service training)
• ·      Integration (It can be a struggle for any volunteer and we all integrate at different paces)
• ·      Getting sick (from anything ranging from food to unclean water)
• ·      Slow moving culture (this is a challenge because we are used to working at a much quicker pace in the states and it can take quite a while to get a project started)
• ·      A community moving very slowly in getting to know a volunteer and in building trust with them
• ·      Especially in bigger towns, there will always be people who won’t have ever seen a volunteer before and won’t know what Peace Corps is.
• ·      With smaller towns, it is possible that everyone will know the volunteer and will know everything there is to know about the volunteer and what they do all day every day.
• ·      Being isolated or at least feeling isolated can be a common feeling among volunteers
• ·      Change in food/diet can be difficult because it is so different from what we were accustomed to in the states and there are many who do not like the food.
• ·      And of course the new culture can be difficult to adjust to.  It can be hard leaving the culture you knew behind for two years and having to learn to live with a new culture.  The Ethiopian culture can be hard to adjust to because many Ethiopians don’t necessarily understand the concept of something like personal space.  I know that this was something many of my fellow volunteers struggled with, especially during pre service training when we lived with host families.

There are so many other things that as Peace Corps volunteers, we struggle with on a regular basis to some extent.  I have learned that how we really prove ourselves as volunteers is showing that we can step out of our comfort zones, being willing to make changes and adjustments in our lives, and facing these challenges and struggles head on.  I am sure that any volunteer would agree that this is easier said than done.  As I said before, being a Peace Corps volunteer is no piece of cake.  It isn’t easy to uproot yourself from your life in the states and move to some foreign place for twenty-seven months.  The Peace Corps volunteers I have gotten to know are some of the strongest people I know and it is always amazing to me how motivated volunteers are to push through the struggles and challenges that we deal with to make some change in the world. 

On another note, I am also extremely impressed by anyone in general who is very clearly willing to step out of their comfort zone and willingly face struggles and challenges to do what they know in their hearts is the best thing to do.  That could mean, becoming a Peace Corps volunteer, moving across country from all whom you consider closest to you, or giving up a great paying job for something that will fit your strengths better.  There are so many different ways in which I have seen people willingly step out of the comfort of their lives and face immense challenges because they ultimately know that it is the best thing to do.  It is a good reminder that the best choice is not always the easiest one.

 

If the stress of the struggles and challenges of a volunteer becomes too much, their head might explode... (not really, but it sure feels like it might happen at times!)

The many different faces of a volunteer when dealing with various struggles and challenges.