9 Tips for Overcoming Culture Shock

January 20, 2010 | Megan Eaves

Overcoming Last week, I wrote about what culture shock is, how to identify it and the phases that you might experience when you go through culture shock while you’re studying abroad. Today, I’m going to give you a few tips on how to overcome culture shock and get on your feet in the shortest amount of time. If you let it, culture shock can definitely become debilitating. When I was studying abroad, I knew several other students that had so much trouble with culture shock that they got very depressed — one even gave up and went home. That doesn’t have to be you!

Here are 9 tips for overcoming culture shock and making your study abroad experience the best that it can be.

1. Recognize culture shock. Experts always say the first step to overcoming your fears or problems is to recognize them. So, congratulations, if you are reading this article, you’ve already completed this first, crucial task of knowing just what culture shock is and how it manifests itself.

2. Be open-minded. Accepting the fact that the culture you’re studying in is very different from your own is a huge part of becoming content with your life abroad. Opening your mind to the fact that others do things differently, have different habits and might have something to teach you will allow you to make the most of your experience and move past that awful second culture shock stage of frustration with your new surroundings.

3. Try new things. This goes along with number 2. Get out there and try something new, whether it be a strange meal, a trip to a nearby town or a night out with your classmates. A big part of the reward of studying abroad is learning about all the new, strange and interesting things that you could never be part of at home.

4. Find a local hobby. When I studied in Dublin, I joined the music society and participated in open mic nights on campus. I also joined a salsa dance class in the evenings. These were both great ways to expand my social circle and get a sense of normalcy and confidence about my surroundings.

5. Keep in touch with the folks at home. Maybe it sounds trite, but you are going to need the support of your family and friends when things just feel too overwhelming to continue. Using Skype and email can be a good way to keep in touch often without racking up a huge bill.

6. Make other study abroad friends. At some point, something about life in [insert your country here] is going to drive you absolutely batty. This is when you need to call on other study abroad friends who are probably experiencing the same frustrations that you are about [said country]. While you don’t want to be too negative all the time, a little healthy venting is a great way to relieve the stress and remind you that you’re not alone in what you’re feeling.

7. Learn the language. If you’re studying in an English-speaking country, you might think this doesn’t apply to you, but it does! Every locale has its own unique dialect, which inevitably includes some vocab you probably aren’t familiar with, or an accent that is different from your own. In Ireland, I had to learn that “yer man” does not refer to my boyfriend, that a “glass” is a half pint of beer and that when someone said “c’mere” to me, they weren’t asking me to move closer, but just starting a sentence.

8. Notice the little things. Seriously, this is one of the funnest parts of studying abroad. Rather than letting all those little differences annoy you, start picking them out and remembering them. You only get one chance to do this in [insert your country here] with fresh eyes, so do it now. Picking up on language differences, driving habits, social norms and taboos is not only a fun game, but it will shorten your adaptation time significantly.

9. Check out local media. This is probably the one time when watching TV is actually good for your health. TV, radio, newspapers and other media are a great avenue into the local surface culture. They also give you something immediate to chat about with potential new friends. So, pick up the daily paper, attend a sports match and make sure to watch Eurovision! (If you don’t know what that is, I suggest you get going right away!)