Counselling Online
Posted
If you have moved to a place where you are physically or culturally isolated then you may begin to feel quite depressed. While every effort should be made to form ties with people in your new country it is also wise to stay in contact with people back home. Due to the ever advancing technologies available it is easy to stay in contact online. It is wise to organise your online community before your leave your home country.
The world is a vast and wondrous place. You may find yourself is the hustle and bustle of Shanghai or the mountainous jungles of Papua New Guinea. You may be removed from people physically or because of a language barrier. You may have moved somewhere like Hong Kong with western ties and a large expat community or you may have been sent to rural Japan where no one is likely to speak English and westerners few and far between.
To combat this you should try as much as you can to learn the language of your host country. There are a variety of online courses you can do. Alternatively you can attend a class or get a private tutor or try Counselling Online. If you are living in a place with a lot of expats still make an effort to branch out and meet locals as it will enhance your experience of living overseas.
Sometimes mingling freely with the locals is not always possible. If you are in a country like PNG that has a lot of crime and violence it is likely that you will live in a compound and may have security. It is an unfortunate reality that you wont be able to wander the streets freely at all hours. In this instance you will have to rely heavily on the expat community for support.
The problem that can arise from this is that you might not have much in common with your small community. There may be a lot of pleasantries but not much of a genuine connection. In this instance the feelings of isolation may be devastating. All is not lost however because you live in an advanced technological age. Contact your family back home via Skype or Facebook and post photos of your exotic new home. They can stay with your via your online presence.
An online community however extensive does not make up for conventional human interaction. So wherever possible try and engage those around you in a real way. Sometimes though, you just miss home and want to see a familiar face. Use the technological advances at your disposal to get online and stay in touch with those you care about.
When you are feeling isolated it can make you want to book the next flight out of there. Try and resist this in the first few months. Give yourself at least 6 months to see how you settle in. If you really do hate your new country then try and remember your motivation for going there. Maybe you wanted to earn a lot of money and pay off your house. Maybe you wanted to send your children to a private school. Whatever the reason stay goal focused, make an effort with your new community and keep in touch with those back home.
No related posts.
