What It’s Like Living On a Tiny Island

Is Island Fever Real?

Not everyone would be able to live on a tiny island. Obviously, there are pros and cons of living anywhere in the world, and the same goes for those of us who (whether we choose to or not) live on a picturesque tiny island in the Caribbean Sea. After seven months of living here, it’s probably safe to say that the “honeymoon phase” is over. Initially, that might sound negative, but trust us, it’s not. We’d still rather be waking up here every day than anywhere else. Living in a constant “honeymoon phase” simply isn’t realistic for continued growth. For this week's newsletter, we want to talk about the potential for “island fever” creeping in the longer we continue to exist on our little island.

We were warned by many expats and locals alike that “island fever” is, in fact, a real thing, and the cure for it is quite simple. Get off the island, even just for a day or two. The common narrative is when you leave the island for a while; this will give you just enough time to miss and appreciate your island home. We’ve yet to be off the island for more than a few days, but when that time comes, I can already picture our return back and it’s a soothing, comforting thought.

What has “island fever” meant to us in our first seven months here?

The longer we’re here, the more people we meet and the more friends we make. I know, terrible, right? It really isn’t. It’s actually quite lovely because we’ve met some wonderful people. What we’re trying to say is this—the times and days when we just don’t have it in us to communicate with anyone else, the days we just don’t want to take on anyone else’s energy (whether positive or negative) can be challenging. Protecting our own energy can be difficult when we step outside of our place because it’s impossible to go for a walk without running into someone we know. And like I said before, usually when that happens, we find ourselves having a nice conversation with a good person 95% of the time. But when we want and need our space, it can be difficult on such a small piece of earth. We see the same people every day, day after day, and sometimes multiple times in the same day. Sometimes, being anonymous is necessary for a period of time to protect our energy and spirit.

The heat. At times, we’ve had periods of days with intensely hot and humid weather without the usual breeze coming east to west that cools the island down. This past September and early October, we experienced incredibly hot weather, even for the locals. We kept hearing over and over from locals that the heat was abnormally hot for any time of the year. During these moments of intensely hot weather, it can make even a quick trip to the grocery store seem difficult and exhausting. Even the Sea offered little respite as the water temperatures felt like a warm bath. Needless to say, everything in life is temporary, even the weather—the cold front from the north in mid-October was a welcomed relief.

Island fever doesn’t affect everyone, and we’re still not entirely sure if it’ll affect us on a grand scale, but we’re aware that it is indeed real, and we’re actively trying to stay ahead of it before it creeps in. Getting off the island for a while every few weeks or so and continuing to protect our energy when we just aren’t feeling “it” are a couple of the things we’re doing to hopefully keep island fever at bay.

Stay tuned for an update down the road. ;)