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jibbs
Joined: 02 Feb 2003
Posts: 452
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 Posted: Wed May 01, 2013 6:32 pm Post subject: Culture shock |
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| Back in the home country, sometimes it just seems strange. Spent a long time in Asia. The TV, going shopping, the things people seem interested in, all strike me as odd sometimes. The feeling comes and goes. It isn't bad really, but it can be overwhelming I suppose. And I'm missing living abroad. Guess it's hard to expect people who've spent their whole lives here to understand these things. Mentions of Asia aren't really something they can relate to. |
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Sashadroogie
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise
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| Posted: Wed May 01, 2013 7:56 pm Post subject: |
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Sounds like reverse culture shock. Can be worse than just plain old culture shock, as the latter is to be expected, whereas the former seems harder to understand, being as it is your own culture. If it is any consolation, you are not alone in experiencing this. And like most things of this nature, it will pass.
Best of luck! |
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nomad soul
Joined: 31 Jan 2010
Posts: 11454
Location: The real world
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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| Posted: Wed May 01, 2013 9:28 pm Post subject: |
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Not always "inevitable," in my opinion.
I have this analogy - people are on a scale that runs from chameleons to leopards. Chameleons adapt effortlessly to any change in environment; leopards never change their spots.
Perhaps no one is pure chameleon or pure leopard, but I know I'm pretty darn close to 100% chameleon.
As far as I can tell, I've never experienced either culture shock or reverse culture shock.
Oh, I never get seasick/carsick, either, and I have no idea what a headache must feel like.
I think it's all genetic.
Regards,
John |
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Sashadroogie
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise
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| Posted: Wed May 01, 2013 9:32 pm Post subject: |
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Dear Johnslat
You are just special, though. : )
Regards
Spotty Sasha |
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johnslat
Joined: 21 Jan 2003
Posts: 13859
Location: Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA
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| Posted: Wed May 01, 2013 10:30 pm Post subject: |
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Dear Sasha,
Well, there IS that - and gorgeous, don't forget gorgeous. 
Regards,
John |
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stinkytofu
Joined: 23 Feb 2012
Posts: 104
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| Posted: Wed May 01, 2013 11:32 pm Post subject: Re: Culture shock |
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| jibbs wrote: |
| Back in the home country, sometimes it just seems strange. Spent a long time in Asia. The TV, going shopping, the things people seem interested in, all strike me as odd sometimes. The feeling comes and goes. It isn't bad really, but it can be overwhelming I suppose. And I'm missing living abroad. Guess it's hard to expect people who've spent their whole lives here to understand these things. Mentions of Asia aren't really something they can relate to. |
What your experiencing is more than just reverse culture shock. You come home and realize what a cultural wasteland your own country is. People in western countries live to work instead of work to live like most normal countries do. Also, people in western countries are narcissistic, socially disconnected, stressed out, consume tons of junk food, over medicated and the dating scene is terrible. After a few weeks at home your ready to start teaching again for obvious reasons. |
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denise
Joined: 23 Apr 2003
Posts: 3419
Location: finally home-ish
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 12:58 am Post subject: Re: Culture shock |
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| stinkytofu wrote: |
| jibbs wrote: |
| Back in the home country, sometimes it just seems strange. Spent a long time in Asia. The TV, going shopping, the things people seem interested in, all strike me as odd sometimes. The feeling comes and goes. It isn't bad really, but it can be overwhelming I suppose. And I'm missing living abroad. Guess it's hard to expect people who've spent their whole lives here to understand these things. Mentions of Asia aren't really something they can relate to. |
What your experiencing is more than just reverse culture shock. You come home and realize what a cultural wasteland your own country is. People in western countries live to work instead of work to live like most normal countries do. Also, people in western countries are narcissistic, socially disconnected, stressed out, consume tons of junk food, over medicated and the dating scene is terrible. After a few weeks at home your ready to start teaching again for obvious reasons. |
I'm sorry to hear that you feel that way. (Both of you, but mostly the second poster.) I don't know who you're hanging out with or where you work, but things definitely aren't that bleak. It is quite easy to find like-minded people with travel experience and/or interest in other cultures, and I don't know anyone who would consider McDonald's a viable dinner option.
Or maybe I'm just one of johnslat's mostly-chameleons. |
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Perilla
Joined: 09 Jul 2010
Posts: 792
Location: Hong Kong
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 3:04 am Post subject: Re: Culture shock |
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| denise wrote: |
| stinkytofu wrote: |
| jibbs wrote: |
| Back in the home country, sometimes it just seems strange. Spent a long time in Asia. The TV, going shopping, the things people seem interested in, all strike me as odd sometimes. The feeling comes and goes. It isn't bad really, but it can be overwhelming I suppose. And I'm missing living abroad. Guess it's hard to expect people who've spent their whole lives here to understand these things. Mentions of Asia aren't really something they can relate to. |
What your experiencing is more than just reverse culture shock. You come home and realize what a cultural wasteland your own country is. People in western countries live to work instead of work to live like most normal countries do. Also, people in western countries are narcissistic, socially disconnected, stressed out, consume tons of junk food, over medicated and the dating scene is terrible. After a few weeks at home your ready to start teaching again for obvious reasons. |
I'm sorry to hear that you feel that way. (Both of you, but mostly the second poster.) I don't know who you're hanging out with or where you work, but things definitely aren't that bleak. It is quite easy to find like-minded people with travel experience and/or interest in other cultures, and I don't know anyone who would consider McDonald's a viable dinner option.
Or maybe I'm just one of johnslat's mostly-chameleons. |
IMO much of it is down to personality. What Tofu says is perfectly true unfortunately. Some of us notice these things and are negatively affected by them, while others either don't notice or aren't affected. |
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Sashadroogie
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 6:56 am Post subject: |
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There is good news! For everyone, there is a solution! Come to Russia!! Masses of culture! Little shock. Much soul!
Come to Russia! Live life the way it was supposed to be lived! |
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Sashadroogie
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Posts: 11061
Location: Moskva, The Workers' Paradise
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 7:10 am Post subject: |
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| ...except maybe for gorgeous and special Johnslat - he's already living the life : ) Lucky devil! |
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DosEquisX
Joined: 09 Dec 2010
Posts: 361
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 8:11 am Post subject: |
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I can suffer from some serious culture shock. It was so bad for South Korea and China that I had episodic ataxia the first week in each country. Those were the only two times I have had it in my life. The former was because it was the first time I ever went overseas. The latter was due to expecting China to be similar to South Korea and having never taught college students before. After my first trip to each country, I had no health problems. I also had no culture shock going from one Asian country to another.
I didn't have a problem going from USA to Ireland either, but that's was probably because I have family in both countries. If I get into a CELTA program in a European country, I'll probably travel there a couple of weeks before the CELTA to adjust to living in Spain beforehand. |
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jibbs
Joined: 02 Feb 2003
Posts: 452
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 2:49 pm Post subject: Re: Culture shock |
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| stinkytofu wrote: |
What your experiencing is more than just reverse culture shock. You come home and realize what a cultural wasteland your own country is. People in western countries live to work instead of work to live like most normal countries do. Also, people in western countries are narcissistic, socially disconnected, stressed out, consume tons of junk food, over medicated and the dating scene is terrible. After a few weeks at home your ready to start teaching again for obvious reasons. |
I don't know about all that. Never heard of a normal country. |
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kpjf
Joined: 18 Jan 2012
Posts: 385
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 5:41 pm Post subject: Re: Culture shock |
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| stinkytofu wrote: |
People in western countries live to work instead of work to live like most normal countries do. |
What about Japan and South Korea, 2 of the biggest Asian countries? Haven't they (if we generalise) got an unhealthy attitude towards work? Do people in Japanese companies not have to stay on for hours if the task isn't done with no extra pay? In my country at least, such things (generally) do not happen. You work overtime - you get paid! None of this oh I'll just work for 3 hours extra for free. People in the UK wouldn't accept such nonsense (unless of course it could lead to some kind of promotion).
And, what about Japan being one of the worst developed countries for being a working mother? Japan: The worst developed country for working mothers?
And, what about S.Korea having the 2nd highest suicide rate in the world?
And, what about this: Meet the 'tutor kings and queens'?
What do the last 2 say about their respective cultures?
I'm just throwing out some examples, because I don't think your (sweeping) statements about the west are very accurate. Of course it all depends on your hometown and maybe your city is small, dead with not much to do, which is fair enough. However, sometimes when things are new and different they seem "better" and people tend to knock their own city after seeing these new and "exiting" cultures. |
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Teacher in Rome
Joined: 09 Jul 2003
Posts: 1286
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| Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 7:51 pm Post subject: |
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| You work overtime - you get paid! None of this oh I'll just work for 3 hours extra for free. People in the UK wouldn't accept such nonsense (unless of course it could lead to some kind of promotion). |
Oof - people in the UK accept all sorts of nonsense, such as unpaid (illegal) "internships" to get their foot in the door. We're talking mainly grads here. Or zero hour contracts where you can't take on any other work, but have no assurance you'll actually get work or get paid for those hours that you leave free for employers.. The working environment has become unbelievably difficult in the UK over the last few years, and we haven't even touched on endless restructurings, insecure work, frozen wages, mass redundancies in the public sector, etc etc...
That would be, for me, the biggest cultural shock if I returned to the UK. The job insecurity, coalition governments that seem to make up punitive policy on the hoof, the fear, the vulnerability of losing your job, your home.
When I left the UK (and we're talking 15 years or so ago) there was much more optimism. Everything felt more settled. Now it's paranoia, rapid change, dog eat dog, fat bonuses for those at the top, threat of eviction for those at the bottom. The UK has become poorer and less forgiving of the poor - all at the same time. How did that happen? Those at the bottom have become demonised, whereas those at the top have been vilified. How can people have twisted themselves into such knots? I think it's a mass psychosis, myself.
So, for me, it's less a reverse culture shock, and more of a "the world has changed on its axis" shock. To a certain extent, I think we're isolated from it all when we live abroad. We're not really local, and we aren't generally so immersed in our host country that we feel 100% committed or part of it. So when we go back "home", we're shocked to see that things have changed, and that we no longer really fit in there, either.
I say, don't worry. The pace of change has vastly exceeded our ability to cope with change. We can never put the clock back and we'll all of us struggle to even keep up. The best we can ever hope to do is educate our young people. They are our future. (And they will pay our pensions, if I'm cynical about it...) I don't think you will ever get culture shock if you dedicate your life to making a difference to young people and helping them reach their potential. And that's true whether you're in the UK, in Italy, or in the Far East. |
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