“People of different religions and cultures live side-by-side in almost every part of the world, and most of us have overlapping identities which unite us in very different groups. We can love what we are, without hating what- and who we are not. We can thrive in our own tradition, even as we learn from others, and come to respect their teachings”
Growing up as a second-generation Chinese-American, I recognize the seemingly unbending pressures from family and culture and the struggles of finding personal authenticity and acceptance.
I know how difficult it is to quiet the constant "critical" voice in your head, and the waves of anxiety and low self-confidence that often accompany it. You feel like you’ve fallen so many times that you’ve lost sight of where you are going. But I've also experienced healing and transformation, where the past no longer holds you captive to your future. You can improve your relationships and regain your confidence in yourself, and I am here to show you how.
Do these Cross-Cultural Issues sound familiar?
You don’t want to burden anyone
Most of the time, you end up staying quiet so that you don’t take up space. This helps to prevent rocking the boat in complex family issues, friendships, or society. So you stay still.
Or, you feel like you’re too much. Most of the time, you end up worrying that others find you annoying or you just feel unwanted. This causes you to never speak up and get your needs met.
You feel ashamed and guilty for not meeting expectations
This could stem from predetermined traditions and social rules that are passed down from generation to generation. Or maybe you’re beginning to redefine your values based on your own truths. This leads you to learn not to base your successes on the measurements placed on us by others. However, this can be a stress-inducing situation, especially when you have to face your friends or family to stick to tradition.
You feel the need to fit in or conform to other standards
You’re beginning to see where you want to branch out, but in order to still b accepted by your loved ones, you have to do things like not show face or honor traditions you find outdated so the family isn’t ashamed. However, this prevents you from being authentic and loving the unique individual that is you. You’re seeking to live for yourself and not other’s approval or acceptance.
You feel an obligation to your family or loved ones
It does not help anyone's mental health to owe “something” or have a debt that you did not ask for. You may feel an invisible receipt of outstanding debt that you must provide your duty and allegiance in order to pay off.
What is cross-cultural counseling in long beach, ca?
The term cross-cultural implies interaction with people of different cultural, ethnic, age, and class backgrounds within an ethnic group. Oftentimes miscommunication is likely to happen when it involves significant cultural differences among the communicators within the group. This is known as a cross-cultural difference.
When differences show up between different groups, everyone has their own opinion of what is right. With this fixed mindset, it is difficult to see a resolution, and easy to lose hope. This can cause people to shut down and remain silent when pressed about an issue. It’s often a sign that it’s time to get help when proving each other wrong becomes more important than trying to improve communication and provide mutual respect. Sometimes we may just need to take a step back. This will allow you to recognize your own biases as well as the biases of others.
Within cross-cultural counseling, we can discuss issues within a culture. Such as expectations set on you by family or intergenerational trauma you’ve experienced within your childhood. This type of counseling allows us to explore the layers of how culture, generations, and, expectations shape us.
Is multicultural counseling the same as cross-cultural counseling?
The term multicultural counseling tends to refer to how society and external factors affect ethnic or cultural groups. The difference in cross-cultural issues is that it deals with comparison across cultures rather than the external factors brought on in society. The purpose is to understand cultural differences in order to make a change within the individual rather than in a collective environment. However within my code as a counselor, I am capable of sitting in the room and processing multicultural issues because they intertwine with cross-cultural issues too.
importance of cross-cultural counseling in long beach, ca
Counseling can be a scary place. It can be hard to know if therapy is the right place for you. You may fear the stigma of mental health services especially if your culture doesn’t support this. That is why privacy and confidentiality are key to counseling. What happens in therapy stays here. Plus as I work through helping you with a treatment plan, I try to steer away from diagnosis as much as possible. I see assessment as a guide, but never something to place as a label because it can change the direction of one’s life.
Counseling can help you better resolve arguments, disagreements, and/or conflicts with your partner, family, and/or friends who don’t understand your cultural point of view. In therapy, you’ll be able to resolve issues of identity within your community, family collective, and as an individual. Likewise, counseling can help you with realigning what your values are, what you believe in, and what are values that were taught to you as facts without reason. This process helps you release the notions that keep you hostage and places restrictions on you. You can be free from the absolutes you believed in as a child.
Lastly, you will be able to Identity language, behavior, traditions, heritage roles, and rules that you abide by based on race/ethnicity, gender, family/societal traditions, economic status, sexual orientation, and others.
Area of focus
First Generation Immigrants
Immigrants arrive with hopes and dreams of providing luck and opportunities to their children. The emotional toll that come with the sacrifice is often high, and can tear the fragile relationships within the family apart. Growing up in one culture, and growing old in another, you argue to be heard, but often are misunderstood by those who you love most deeply.
balancing family traditions & american culture
Everyone wants to fit in, have friends, and be liked, however, not every person has the luxury of getting it. For those who are caught in the middle between two cultures, not feeling fully accepted by either, it is a constant struggle to balance between family and achieving individuality, as our country has become more diverse than its ever been before.
new generation of acculturation
You are distinct and unique, creating your own path, as a new culture of your own. There are influences from a variety of sources, however the mixture is particularly yours. You have your own worries and fears that does not fit in the previous generations before you. You seek to find your own values and creating an authentic way of life of your own.
How can I help?
I am here to acknowledge your differences and help you navigate through better relationships with others who may not understand your perspective. I aid in helping you/and your partner communicate your beliefs to each other, better understand behaviors that are often misinterpreted, and leave people feeling hurt, unheard, and abandoned. I am here to provide you with tools to help you cope with the isolation, worry and/or stress, anxiety, and loneliness you may feel from not being understood by those around you.
I do this by looking at strategies and approaches to understand the goals that are culturally sensitive and respectful to you. This will help you navigate a better understanding as to how to find similarities as well as make healthy boundaries with those around you. Ultimately, I will be sensitive to your cultural perspective and help you navigate where to go from here in a way that is true to you. I am simply here to listen and be your guide.
Begin Cross-Cultural Therapy In Long Beach, CA, Los Angeles County, or Orange County, CA
Let’s work through the tough issues you may be dealing with in society or within your cultural group. This can cause tension in families and hold us back from becoming the person we desire to be. Counseling can help you to break free from guilt, shame, or quiet. I am a skilled therapist who specializes in cross-cultural counseling and multicultural counseling in my counseling office in Long Beach, California. To get started, schedule your free consultation, or to get started on your counseling journey, follow these simple steps:
Meet with me! Connie Hsu, your understanding therapist
Begin to open up communication and start to work through the silence.
Other Mental Health Services at Healing Generations Counseling
Multicultural counseling isn’t the only service I offer in my in-office and online Long Beach, CA counseling practice. Other mental health services at Healing Generations Counseling include individual therapy, couples therapy, family therapy, life transitions, divorce recovery, trauma therapy, therapy for teens, and EMDR therapy, support groups for women, support groups for teens. All sessions are offered via online therapy in California, with limited in-person options. Begin therapy today in Long Beach, CA, Orange County, CA, and Los Angeles County, CA.