Culture shock, crisis-like adaption

Culture shock is about the new experiences when it comes to food, people, and society. It is a crisis-like adaptation to a culture that we are not used to. By doing research beforehand and finding ways to cope with different cultures, you will do yourself a favor not ruining your experience abroad.

The 4 phases of being shocked by culture

Culture shock is the reaction that happens when people are in cultures that differ from their own, and it affects different people to varying degrees. There are also 4 phases of culture shock that most people tend to travel through before their culture shock decreases. Knowing how to handle each of these phases will help you to handle and hopefully minimize the severity of culture shock.

Honeymoon — when everything feels new, exciting and fresh.

Crisis — Homesickness, when you start realizing that you value things from your home country higher than the current country you are in.

Recovery — You start to recover from the minor crises above.

Adjustment — You start to get used to the new culture and your new everyday life. The new culture feels more like home now.

Coping with the phases with 5 strategies

Get to know the four phases of culture shock, so you can be aware of what phase you are in when traveling abroad. Learn as much as you can about the new culture before traveling abroad and at the same time immerse yourself in the new culture. Try not to get insulted or annoyed by aspects of the new culture — be as open and respectful as possible. Take time to rest and recover from spending time in the new culture. You can do this by searching activities that are familiar to you and other people from your home country and culture. Know that after spending a long time in a new culture, it will no longer feel new and you can experience reverse culture shock when you return to your home culture. However, you will be back in your country better educated with a variety of new experiences, perspectives, and agreements.

In order to get shocked by a new culture, we have to step out from our daily routines and monotony lives. Traveling to a foreign country, or even moving abroad, will push you out from the established zone of comfort you are in. Yet, the fear of facing unfamiliar situations or even finding yourself helpless on the streets not able to communicate will be the reasons of many people’s unfulfilled dreams of traveling.

We experience different adaption phases and their length very individually. The power of a culture shock is influenced by how well you manage to act against frustration.

Improved viewpoint

Keep in mind that feelings associated with culture shock are common to most travelers traveling abroad for the first or second time. With repeated trips abroad, you will notice that your culture shock will be much less serious or even non-existent every time. Try to keep a positive and happy attitude with a sense of adventure and a thirst for learning. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes to think about why they do things that they do.

You will feel able to learn a new language more easily, but first, you need to be able to cope with rises and falls of the culture shock adventure. When you familiarize yourself with another culture’s way of life, it gives you fresh, new perspectives on various topics such as politics, religion, and relationships. Learning more about others, you will learn more about yourself as well. It includes your goals, your dreams and limits, and boundaries.

Keep learning!