Whether you are a globetrotting pro or a beginner expat, living overseas can be an unsettling experience. For those just arriving, setting up a new house, settling in the kids, refitting a marriage into a new culture, and starting new work can all add pressure to an already confusing
situation.

Even for those who have spent years abroad, feelings of inadequacy, marital problems and depression are common issues which are difficult to face alone. Mental imbalance compounded by culture shock at any stage of the expat experience is a common and serious problem, according to Carmen Guanipa of the Department of Counselling and School Psychology of the San Diego State University. "If you feel stressed out, look for help. There is always someone or some service available to you."
 
Many international firms who move their employees around offer counselling services as part of the relocation support. But often the counsellor is also a colleague in a small office or the service is superficial at best, and many expats feel awkward or embarrassed to ask for help from someone they also socialize with in a small expat circle. Many expats opt instead for local counsellors -- either expats who have set up a practice or those native to the area. 
 
As with any health care service professional, finding a local counsellor requires diligent research. Across the board, experts agree that a counsellor should speak the patient's mother tongue (or a language the patient is extremely fluent in). Searching for words in a foreign language or struggling to explain or describe an emotion will hinder the healing process and add to the frustration of culture shock, which may be at the base of the problem in the first place.

If you need to see a marriage counsellor, the search may be more complex. "Most couples simply don't consider that their relationship is also being shipped to a new country where the impact of a variety of pressures and shocks can take a heavy toll, often leading to a divorce court," according to Robin Pascoe, author of several expat books including, A Moveable Marriage. Finding an appropriate marriage counsellor is tricky anywhere, but a local counsellor may also carry foreign attitudes and cultural preconceptions that do not jibe with your own goals or ideals for your marriage.

 1 2 3 Next >