USA Cultural Shock & Cultures
As an immigrant in new country you should usually face cultural shock. Dealing with new people, new place and environment may cause of many inconvenience. And many students face frustration. The main inconveniences that students usually feel are as followings:
• Sadness, loneliness, melancholy
• Preoccupation with health
• Aches, pains, allergies
• Insomnia or excessive sleep
• Changes in mood, depression, feeling vulnerable
• Anger, irritability, resentment
• Loss of identity
• Lack of confidence
• Obsessions over cleanliness
• Longing for family
• Feelings of being lost or overlooked
In order to reduce the inconveniences you can follow some particular ways that may help you afford at least a comfort. Think of the followings:
• Keep a common fact in mind that it’s really usual for many things to be different in a new country. Nothing to be frustrated.
• Try to contact your family, friend and relatives regularly
• Try to surround yourself with your favorite things
• Try to afford your favorite dishes
• You may try to find out your religious friend
• Try to engage yourself to your favorite sports, cultural program or recreations
• Be always confident to any of your future related activities
• Be in touch of the campus programs that’s arranged to help the international students.
Supports you may get
Since travelling from your home country to the host country you’ll get an active support from the institutional admission office or International Student Office of the concern campus. Through an orientation program this support usually starts where you’ll be accounted with all factors you may face. You’ll also get a support from your new friend surrounding you, academic advisor or psychological counselling center. Also many schools in the USA keep well trained therapist to help you adjust in the in the new environment. Moreover, you should look for the like-minded friends that can be much helpful for you to create your favorite world and you’ll feel as happy as your own home.
Also, American culture may be found as difficult as a fully new experience while you’re very new in this country and you never have been here. You may need time to understand their culture, habits, social practices, daily activates and in this regard you may found them very confusing at times. But you must have to be patient and try to make it as easy as possible. Some key factors where all the international students usually find themselves different from are the following:
Independence:
The belief of individualism is very strong in the Americans. They’re habituated this by born. All of them believe themselves as a separate and individual one rather than dependencies within the environment, nations, religious, tribe or relatives or even within the family.
Equality:
A statement from the ADI (American Declaration of Independence) is strongly established in the Americans that “all are created equal”.
Informality:
Being informal in the behavior towards others is the result of the Americans belief of equality. So there’s nothing to be surprised if a store clerk or a waiter introduce himself by his first name. Many of the new internationals make this type of wrong. Be careful to understand their culture first.
Forthrightness:
Americans usually don’t like to keep any conflict or disagreement in mind. They always like to be frank and open in each and every part of behavior. If any conflict is occurred between someone this should be solved immediately through an open discussion.