WRITING: 5 Tips For Overcoming Culture Shock
Culture shock can happen and will happen to everyone. And yes, I will argue against well-seasoned travelers and long time expats that it can happened to them as well! Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it below.
Culture shock affects everyone differently: some people withdraw from others, other may become sad or depressed (homesickness can hit hard during this time- even if you don’t have a home!), some become angry at all the little differences, and others struggle to find meaning in their world and the relationships around them.
I recently wrote a little article for a website, Expat Women in Turkey, titled 5 Tips For Overcoming Culture Shock: When The Excitement Of Moving Wears Off. After 2 summers volunteering abroad, 3 countries of residence (both singled and now married) and numerous university study abroad students to prep and debrief on this topic, I shared five ways I have found helpful to process/shake off the culture shock and get back into ‘normalcy’.
Here is the start of the article:
Spring is gorgeous here in Izmir, Turkey. The sun shines and the weather is just the right temperature. Recently, I went out for a few errands and just basked in the rays of sunlight peeking through as I weaved in and out of the shadows made from my neighborhood buildings and trees. In a split second, I went from gloriously praising MY lovely city to cursing the stinky rules of THEIR culture. Because, for the almost 1 millionth time, I barely missed stepping on fresh dog poop in the middle of the sidewalk….
Click over here to read the rest of it!
I would love to hear what helps you when culture shock hits.
