Area of Expertise
IdentitY
Culture
cultural challenges
rediscovering you
Identity & Culture. Cultural challenges & Rediscovering you.
I love working with people interested in understanding how their identity is influenced by culture and cultural contrasts. This includes the acculturation process, cultural stress and ways in which we cope, plus our sense of belonging and/or feeling like an outsider. My particular focus is on individualist and collectivist cultures. Individualist cultures emphasize more focus on the self and oftentimes found within the US, while collectivist cultures are often part of more community-focused places including such as parts of Asia like India, some European countries, and Central and South America.
People I often work with have immigrated to the United States as an adult for work. I just as frequently work with people whom have grown up in the United States but feel caught between cultures. This includes first (and 1.5) generation immigrants, as well as second and third generation Americans who find themselves in surrounded by traditions and expectations at home that are significantly different to the expectations outside of the house. I also work with people who feel tension being in a significant relationship of remarkably differing cultural views.
I have studied in-depth relevant literature, theories, and experiences of the topic. I have conducted research into the acculturation process, coping strategies, and its impact on identity. Additionally, my work experience and my personal experiences living abroad contribute to my grasp of the topic. While there are nuanced and specific aspects I do not know today and some I never will, a solid comprehension of the foundations serve as a strong beginning for our inquiry.
caught between cultures
the significance of feeling caught between cultures and its impact.
The tenuous balancing act of living in a world of differing values can be overwhelming and paralyzing at times, especially when you’re caught between them. Among many things, stress, anxiety, and/or depression can arise. You’re coming face to face with conflicting values, beliefs, expectations. Not only that, but perhaps the way you’ve lived your life in the past just don’t align with your values now. This is a big deal. Feelings of shame, guilt, sadness, and/or resentment, may surface. This is completely understandable.
Let’s discover the balance right for you. During this process, people will come to identify the cultural values important to them. This active engagement can shore up a stronger sense of self. Therapy can be particularly useful when someone finds themselves caught living within different cultures with contrasting values and expectations. This friction can bring forth opportunity for deeper self awareness, more alignment with the values most important, and more comfort with who you are.
Acculturating
Acculturative Stress
Finding Balance
Acculturating, Acculturative Stress, and Finding Your Balance.
It can be tough moving to a new place. At first, the newness can be captivating and the differences liberating. After some time, however, absences and differences become more noticable. That’s why we might call family and friends back home more frequently, we may lean on music, food, sports related to your homeland.
There are many ways to adapt to a new culture. Sometimes they involve full adoption into the new ways, eager to fit right in. Other times, it’s rejection of it and joining familiar groups and communities. Oftentimes, there’s a mix of the two — holding dear to significant aspects from where you came from while also making space for some newness too.
There’s not a right or a wrong here, but rather what works for you. In therapy together, we’ll explore what makes you you. What’s important to hold tight? What' doesn’t feel aligned? How would you like to balance yourself as you move through this time of adjustment? Whatever balance you choose today may or may not change in time. It’s your acculturation process, and it’s impact on your identity now.