Counseling for Cultural Adaptation

Moving into a new culture is never easy. Although adaptation has enabled humans to survive in harsh environments, changes often cause a great deal of discomfort. Everything you have established, such as doctors, therapists, and hairdressers, may feel difficult and confusing.

Common stages involved in cultural adaptation include the Honeymoon Phase with its positive feelings of excitement related to the new experiences, followed by the Crisis Phase, when people start to experience discrepancies between their culture of origin and the new culture.

Culture shock can be expressed as disbelief about certain moral values, language, and aesthetics, and it can seriously impact mood, eliciting negative feelings toward others. Symptoms include hopelessness, disappointment, disorientation, anger, physical symptoms, withdrawal from people, and decreased self-esteem.

The length of time needed to accept the changes is unique to each person and depends on his or her strengths and weaknesses. Sometimes, therapy and support groups can help to accelerate the adaptation process. They may be able to provide the tools to cope with the negative aspects of change, provide resources, and offer new opportunities to expand friendships.

With time you will learn to accept and integrate parts of the new culture while maintaining your own cultural traditions.