Prospective international students should be aware of challenges and resources for maintaining mental health before they board a plane.
Adjusting to a new culture can be emotionally taxing, especially for students with pre-existing psychiatric disorders.
Each year, the number of internationally mobile students rises. In 2013-2014, more than 850,000 students headed to the U.S. from abroad, while more than 46,500 U.S. students enrolled inoverseas degree programs for the 2011-2012 school year, according to the most recent data available from the Institute of International Education.
Though each international student will have vastly different experiences based on his or her homeland, host culture and individual personality, many experience increased stress and new challenges to mental wellness.
Universities often discuss culture shock with international students and those preparing to study abroad even for short amounts of time, but the stress of prolonged time abroad – whether a one-year master's degree or four-year bachelor's degree – carries risks above and beyond culture shock. In its handbook for travelers, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warns that "pre-existing psychiatric disorders can recur, and latent, undiagnosed problems can become apparent for the first time."
Amy Hakanson, a U.S. student pursuing a yearlong program at the Eric Sahlström Institute, a folk music foundation in Tobo, Sweden, dealt with issues of depression and seasonal affective disorder during the dark Scandinavian winter. "I knew it would be hard," she says, "but I couldn’t really prepare for six hours of daylight per day."
A desire to learn the Swedish instrument nyckelharpa spurred Hakanson’s move to the country eight months ago despite existing psychiatric issues. "I become depressed in the winter anyways, back home, but it was a lot more intense and obvious here," says the Portland, Oregon, native.
Patti Collins, a health and wellness counselor at Northwestern University in Qatar, urges communication between students and their physicians while plans to study internationally are being made.
This will allow physicians to "make appropriate medical recommendations with the knowledge that this student may soon be experiencing new stressors," said Collins, via email. This is particularly important where medication is involved, and students should research if ongoing prescriptions can be filled at their destination.
Experts say prospective international students can turn to universities’ international student services offices to gauge the level of support and health services available. If information on counseling or mental health support is unavailable, prospective students can reach out to current students.
Students should also be aware that the young adult years, late teens into the mid-20s, are the ones where issues often arise. Zoe Ragouzeos, assistant vice president for student mental health and director of counseling and wellness services at New York University, says, "International students, just as domestic students, can experience the onset of a biological mental health disorder including schizophrenia and bipolar disorder."
Even without psychiatric disorders, adjusting to a new culture can be an emotionally taxing process that manifests in mood or personality shifts. Able Hsu, a native Californian and third-year Master of Fine Arts student at NYU Tisch School of the Arts Asia, in Singapore, said that as a result of frequent miscommunication she’s become "a more aggressive and easily frustrated person," despite typically being "quite adaptable."
Hsu’s mood improved and she began to appreciate the country more as she explored the city with purpose, she said via email. Her program in film directing forced her to leave her comfort zone to scout locations and look for props, leading her to interesting antique and vintage shops. This explorationemboldened her to seek more of what her new home had to offer.
Positive adaptation, like making friends and participating in enjoyable activities, is important for mental wellness, according to Ragouzeos. "Students who experience a rough road in assimilating to their new environment," she says, may eventually go on "to experience depression, anxiety and even suicidal thinking." These, in turn, can be exacerbated by what she calls "negative attempts at coping," which include substance abuse and risky behavior.
In Sweden, when she felt like she needed professional support, Hakanson approached her program’s vice director for assistance finding options for therapy. Two hours outside of Stockholm, where fluent English is harder to come by, she has discovered that developing language skills has been an important part of engaging with a local support group. "My Swedish is good enough to understand pretty much everything that is said in meetings but it’s still difficult to fully express myself," she says.
Collins said prospective international students facing psychological difficulty should not push themselves at the expense of their health.
"Give yourself permission to delay this adventure to a time when you are feeling emotionally stable," she said via email. "There will always be another opportunity; your health and safety are most important."
Source:/usnews.com/education/
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