More Of A Surge Than A Shock

Most of us don’t have one of those “Oh my gosh! this culture is shocking me!” moments. It is more of a build-up of those situations that don’t fit in our understanding of how the world should work.

As westerners, many of us were taught to be “politically correct”, inclusive, and encourage diversity. We believe we are open minded, we may come from a country that is home to people from many cultures, so a new country should just take a friendly attitude, right? It can be very difficult to admit that we’re having difficulty adapting to another culture. But, it is completely natural. What you’ve been taught as common sense isn’t necessarily true anymore.

Your brain makes assumptions and picks up patterns as a way of dealing with the world. If you had to make new decisions about everything around you all the time, your brain would overheat (well, ok, not technically, but functionally, yes). When your world doesn’t work the way it always has, your assumptions, that have guided you successfully thus far, don’t work anymore and you experience culture shock.

Everyone experiences this differently. Family members go through it at different times, and in their own unique ways. Here's some of the symptoms;

• Physical - weight gain, weight loss, insomnia, reduced immune system
• Emotional - feeling isolated, anxious, helpless, insecure, sad, lonely, angry, resentful
• Behavioural - Changes in temperament, Unwillingness to interact with others, Obsessive behaviour
• Self-identity & Goals - Loss of identity and confidence, feeling out of control and lost, confusion
   regarding expectations and values,
• Idealizing your home country or culture
• Performance - decreased performance in daily tasks (your brain can only do so much!)