After so many years involved in these international moving movements, I can assure you that the adaptation process of the co-expatriate man and woman takes place differently precisely because of the cultural load that involves these two universes: male and female.

Many years ago, when I moved to Jamaica as a co-expatriate, accompanying my husband in his expatriation process, I participated in many play dates (meetings for children to play together) where the feminine universe reigned. That is, 99.9% were mothers accompanying their children. However, I met a father who was with his little daughter, and this father was accompanying his wife in her expatriation process.

It was the first time I had close contact with the man accompanying his wife to live abroad. It was a rich experience because we talked about his challenges of living abroad without having a protagonist role for the first time in his life and living "in the shadow" of his wife. The couple in question was Spanish, an essential detail for cultural reasons.

After so many years, this reality is becoming more common. Here in the United States, the story remains the same. I once heard from a Brazilian co-expatriate that he was learning to live as someone "invisible." In other words, the words change, but they have the same cultural meaning because the male protagonism continues to be the "common" one, despite all the female conquests.

And it is essential to emphasize that there is no judgment of right or wrong. The goal is just to shed light on the facts because, due to the cultural aspects that influence who we are, cultural adaptation occurs differently between men and women when they are accompanying their families to an international experience.

And in this context, specialized assistance in both cases can make the difference for the success of the international experience of the whole family, directly influencing the quality of life of its members because if everyone is well, there are great chances of success. Still, the opposite is also true. If any family member is not well, it can compromise the international experience of the whole family.