What is exactly culture shock?
Culture shock can be described as the feelings one experiences after leaving their familiar home culture to live in another cultural or social environment. Everyone may experience culture shock differently.
Culture shock can be happened to all people who emigrate from their own country to live or to pursue their degree there. Moreover, when we go through the any kinds of changing in our life like moving from student hood to be an employer, changing from being living with parents to staying alone, from being single to marriage...etc. these changing new ways of life, sometimes it causes the feeling of strange and have a lot stress and they find their living condition is facing with difficulty. Such a feeling occurs because they are not familiar or not appreciate with the foreign culture, environment surrounded.
Although culture shock is a state of mind, it can result in many symptoms, both physical and mental. Anyone who has moved from home for the first time or to a new city is probably familiar with the immediate feeling of bewilderment and sometimes loss. Sadness and loss, however temporary, are only natural when living in a new place far from home. The mind needs time to familiarize itself with new surroundings and new ways of life. Some people experience physical symptoms as well. They may feel ill or suffer from sleeplessness or mood swings. Although homesickness is considered a state of mind, it can bring about symptoms such as irritability and a short temper when confronted with confusion over a new culture.
Culture shock has three to five phases, depending on which source you read. Also, depending on factors such as how big the cultural difference is between your home and
your new location, and how long one is away from home, a person may or may not experience all the phases.
The Honeymoon Phase: This phase can last days, weeks, or three months. This is a fun time. Everything is great, exciting, and new. You love the differences, meeting new people, tasting new foods, seeing different architecture, doing new things, working in your new job. You never want this stage to end and during this stage, you never actually think it is going to end. It is like being on some sort of culture drug in which you are high all the time. Colors seem brighter, the language is new and exciting, even if you can’t really understand it, and everything is endearing to you, even the feral dogs roaming the streets (if you happen to be in a country where there is a plethora of feral dogs.) How can it get better than this? Well, the high must subside at some point and, when it does, you are left with a big old headache.
The Honeymoon is Over Phase: During this phase, you're noticing differences, even slight differences, and typically not in a good way. You don't like people's attitudes, you have had enough of the food and just want mom's cooking, you miss your TV program at such-and-such a time, you don't like the water, it's too hot/cold, life is too fast/slow, things are so much "better" at home, they celebrate the wrong holidays, and so forth. There's no set time when this begins — with some people, it can be within days, with others, months. During this phase, many different feelings and emotions may arise like confusion, a person often feels anxious, angry, frustrated, lonely, sad, or irritable. Moodiness abounds and it can be worse for women than for men. You may feel unsure of yourself and feel less competent than in your home country. Feelings of being overwhelmed or angry are also possible. The language barrier is no longer a welcoming challenge. It’s just frustrating not being able to understand the natives. You may feel angry and irritated much of the time. The things you found so endearing during the honeymoon stage just make you mad. A person may withdraw and have difficulty concentrating at their new job.
The Negotiation Phase: As above, there is no set time in which this begins. Essentially, during this phase you decide whether you will succumb to negativity or negotiate past it to make the most of your experience. If you're successful, you regain your sense of perspective, balance, and humor, and move on to the next phase.
The All's Well, or Everything is OK Phase: Those who arrive at this phase feel more at home with the differences in the new culture. You no longer feel isolated and you’re able instead to look at the world around you and appreciate where you are. This is where you live now and you are ok with that. You can communicate better in the language and all of the quirks about this new culture that used to irritate you are now commonplace and don’t really faze you, not even the pack of stray dogs you see on your way to work every day. So it depends on how big a change a person has experienced, the person may feel as if the culture isn't in fact new, but that they belong, or the person may not exactly feel part of the culture, but they're comfortable enough with it to enjoy the differences and challenges. Negative feelings are minimized. The person doesn't have to be in love with the new country (as in the honeymoon phase), but they can navigate it without unwarranted anxiety, negativity, and criticism.
The Reverse Culture Shock Phase: Sure enough, this can happen! Once a person has become accustomed to the way things are done in a different country, that person can go through the same series of culture shock phases when they return home.
In closing, the stages of culture shock are totally normal and happen to most travelers, sometimes multiple times.
Dealing with Culture Shock
Cultural shock is a kind of complex emotional stress that occurs when people move from one culture to another. The necessity to deal with different language, new unspoken rules and unusual physical surrounding can motivate some degree of culture shock and the
bouts of depression that usually accompany it. So you’d better develop a strategy how to deal with it before you face it moving international.
Start with simple recognizing the problem. You may be surrounded by people who speak different language, you might have a hard time understanding the local sense of humor and the way people take in information in that area, but you do not need to consider cultural shock as a bad thing. Recognizing that you are experiencing it can help you deal with it. Some scientists and psychologists believe that without going through cultural shock at some point, it is impossible to adapt completely to the new situation.
• Learn as much as you can about the new location before you go. This means the good, the bad, and the simply different — from time zones, to what side of the street people drive on, to climate/temperature, to foods, political system, culture, customs and religion(s), to "Can you drink the water?" and "What type of electrical outlets do they have?", and more. If there's a language difference, try to pick up a few simple phrases or everyday language use, e.g. greeting, hello, thanks, etc.
• Remember there will be people who fit the image you create of the typical "Person from Country X" and those who do not. Clinging to stereotypes won't help you to learn more about a new country and its people.
• Be open-minded and willing to learning. You have to ask questions if you feel uncomfortable with everything surrounded.
• If you are going to a place where people speak a different language, consider taking a few courses in that language.
• Maintain a sense of humor. (Perhaps the most important!)
• Knowing that the move will be a challenge, give you time. Don't be hard on yourself, make yourself relax.
• Laugh at yourself and others will laugh with you. Most individuals will admire your tenacity and effort to understand their ways, especially if you are devoid of judgment
and cultural comparisons that subtly and perhaps unconsciously convey a veil of superiority.
• Don't withdraw! You should continue to experience the new culture until it becomes yours.
• Travel within the country, and visit cultural events and locations, such as museums or historic sites.
• Discover the place you live, take a walk in the city; find some interesting shop or café. You will find out that it is possible to live in this new place with all necessary conveniences. The shock fades once you begin to learn more about a new culture and its people.
• Build new friendships. Try to put yourself close with others and be ready to accept the differential habit. find other travelers to share your emotions with
• Associate with positive people. This will help to minimize the isolated feeling. Those people will help you to bring out your loneliness.
• Avoid the company of people who complain about the country a lot. Their friendship is very toxic and will prevent you from settling down well.
• Stay active, eat well, and get enough sleep.
• Moreover, try to remember time before you came to the new place, the reasons why you wanted to do participate in the program. it is also a part of self encouragement.
• Bring a few touches of home with you, such as photos of favorite locations and family members, your favorite music, or favored knickknacks.
• Keep in touch with people at home by Skype, email, phone, and postcards— whatever. This can give you some comfort while you are away, and it will help you to minimize reverse culture shock when you get back home.
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