How to arrive and

CULTURE SHOCK – the 5 stages

HAPPY

“These people are crazy! I’ll

never understand them.”

“I’m homesick. It’s not what I was expecting.

Everything is different. I think I’ve made a mistake.”

“I’ll always be a foreigner, but these people are OK in

their own way”

5

4

“I’m adjusting very well. I’ll be fine from now on.”

3

2

1

“I’m excited about the trip and the new country!”

E M O

T I

O N

S

SAD

TIME

CULTURE SHOCK – why it exists and why you need to know about it

Culture shock is a natural negative emotional reaction to being surrounded by unfamiliar language, people, culture and surroundings. It is an entirely normal human response. You will experience it at least once during your stay in your new country. Recognizing and understanding culture shock will help you get through this time and make the adjustment to life in a new culture easier.

What makes culture shock so insidious is the silent negative effect that it has on you on. At a time when your motivation needs to be strong in order to do all the things you need to do to settle in, it quietly sabotages your actions. It causes you to not give of your best by sapping your motivation, which slows down your rate of action. You could find yourself taking longer to do simple things because they are different from what you are used to. This apparent ‘time-wasting’ leads to a constantly building sense of frustration. This frustration can reach a constantly high level that has a detrimental effect on how you interact with other people. As you can see, a negative spiral of emotions and events sets in. You could easily find yourself lacking the confidence and motivation to go out there and do the things you need to in order to achieve the new lifestyle you were hoping for.
Culture shock does not hit you all at once after arriving in your new country. Instead it grows as you go about settling in and you encounter customs, assumptions, behaviours and values which conflict with or make you question your own. It can affect both adults and children. While living abroad is an exciting time for most individuals and families, it is also a challenging time. The familiar supports that make you feel at home - family and close friends, familiar foods, routines, and ways of life - are gone when you live abroad. When you move to a foreign country, nothing about your new surroundings feels familiar or predictable.
Feelings of culture shock are most often felt in the first weeks and months that you are adjusting to life in a new country or culture. You are facing many new challenges all at once, and these can contribute to your feelings of disorientation.

The symptoms of culture shock

Once the initial excitement about living abroad wears off, you may find yourself becoming more aware of the cultural differences around you. Communication problems or difficulties with the language may affect your day-to-day interactions. You might even exhibit excessive hostility toward the local people or say offensive and negative things.

The severity of the condition depends on many factors, such as whether or not you have ever been in a new culture before, how adaptable you are to new situations, and how your value system is affected by the new customs you meet. Age also plays a role as older people experience culture shock for longer and sometimes more intensely.
You may begin to experience symptoms of culture shock. And these can include:

• 
  impatience
  
• 
  irritability
  
• 
  frustration
  
• 
  anger
  
• 
  sadness or depression
  
• 
  heightened anxiety
  
• 
  homesickness
  
• 
  feelings of incompetence or lack of confidence
  
• 
  exhaustion or fatigue
  
• 
  boredom
  
• 
  compulsive eating, drinking or sleeping
  

Just like you, any children with you are probably also missing their familiar surroundings and may be experiencing symptoms of culture shock. They may have a new school to go to, be meeting new friends, getting used to new foods and adjusting to the local ways. Going out to play may be a totally different experience for them in a new culture. Signs that your child might be going through culture shock include:

• 
  sleeplessness, disrupted naps, or nightmares
  
• 
  anger
  
• 
  anxiety about being separated from you
  
• 
  headaches
  
• 
  stomach-aches
  
• 
  crying, especially for younger children
  
• 
  injuries or mishaps on the playground during the first few weeks
  
• 
  avoiding social interaction with other children or peers
  

You need to realize that culture shock can create tension for everyone in the family. The best way to deal with it is to talk about it and to acknowledge that a new country puts new and unfamiliar demands on everyone. Be patient with your children and with how they are expressing the stress of feeling dislocated. Be as accessible to them as you can be. Create as much stability as you can. Above all, give your children as much love, support, and nurturing as you can at this time.

Be aware that anyone accompanying you in your relocation will also be experiencing similar emotions with culture shock. Informing them about the “Culture Shock” phenomenon will assist them in their adjustment to their new surroundings. It will also decrease the friction between yourselves too. Here are some of the many hurdles that you may face living in a different culture:

• 
  language barriers
  
• 
  being unfamiliar with social norms, such as the rules of politeness
  
• 
  not understanding the local sense of humour
  
• 
  not knowing your way around
  
• 
  not having a network of family and friends
  
• 
  being unfamiliar with the work culture
  
• 
  not feeling comfortable with the different pace of life
  
• 
  missing familiar routines, foods, customs, conveniences, and traditions