Cross cultural issues affect the way in which we experience life. Our culture is determined by more than our food, music and language. Family relationships, gender roles, sexual expression, concept of time, humour, politeness and common sense are just some of the elements that are influenced by our spiritual and religious background, ethnicity and race.

Cross cultural issues usually become more pronounced when we move or immigrate and become exposed to people from other races and religions. It's common to feel different, and to lose your sense of self-esteem. Being bicultural or multicultural means that you may be confused about your allegiance to more than one community.  

Relationships can also bring out the worst of cross cultural issues. Behaviours that are normal in one culture can seem insensitive, unkind and even obnoxious to the other partner. This can cause serious family, marital or social issues. It has been shown that cross cultural issues can lead to domestic violence, as well as victimization in the community.

If you feel that you don't fit in, lonely, anxious, or even victimized, you should consider getting help. People in cross cultural relationships who feel that their partners are intrusive, removed or unkind can benefit from counselling, too.

Cross cultural issues counselling offers a safe environment for people to explore their own history and the identities that they have developed to survive emotionally in a multicultural society. Therapy is a great tool for multicultural families to find common ground and reshape an identity for the family as individual members and as a family unit. Done individually or in a group setting, there are many ways in which to help a person to keep their own identities in a multicultural world.

If you are looking for a counsellor or psychologist who can help address your cross cultural issues you may want to search the directory to find a professional whose approach will suit you best.
 

Entering into a relationship means merging your life with another person, understanding his or her flaws, quirks and beliefs. With marriage rates declining and divorce statistics set at 50%, it is clear that people are increasingly challenged by marriage and relationship issues, and many lack effective ways to address them. So how can we bridge the gap to understanding our partners better and enjoying romantic bliss?

Many factors affect the interpersonal relationship between two partners who are a couple and sometimes it's hard to see the cause of conflict or friction in a relationship. While some people find divorce to be the best or only option, other people speak to counsellors and psychologists  in a bid to try salvage the relationship.

Signs that indicate a need for couples counselling include poor communication in a relationship, affairs, living past one another, inability to resolve marriage of couples' issues, and acting out negative feelings. When divorce seems like the only option, or if a couple is staying together for the kids' sake, that's a sure sign that therapy is needed.

Therapists do not necessarily  believe that all marriages can be salvaged, but counselling can often help even some of the most challenged relationships.  Through talk therapy, the couple will discover again why they fell in love and what they can do to get back to that place in their marriage. They use a range of effective, proven methods to help couples in any situation to restore intimacy and move past the hurt and wounds to a safe and comfortable place.

The concrete tools used by marriage therapists provide guidance in a supportive and encouraging setting and empower clients to restructure their thoughts and emotions. It helps the couple to work with each other, instead of on one another, helping each individual to find the person he or she is at the core level and to build a happy union.

If you are looking for a counsellor or psychologist who works with  couples you may want to search the directory to find a professional whose approach will suit you best.

Perfectionism is considered as a personality trait among many mental health practitioners.  Perfectionists tend to view projects or tasks that are not perfect done, as unworthy. Unless they know that they can do something perfectly, they are unlikely to take it on. They tend not to care much about the learning process while completing a task, but rather about the end project, which, for them, is the most important aspect of any project they undertake.

Procrastination is a great obstacle with people who are perfectionists. They usually don't want to start a task until they are sure that they can do it perfectly. It's common for them to spend an enormous amount of time on a project, making sure that it is done to perfection. Yet, perfectionism prevents these people from appreciating a job well done. Instead, they don't believe that anything they do is good enough and they constantly compare their results with that of other people. They become fixated on achieving perfection.

There is a correlation between perfectionism and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and some perfectionists also have OCD.  However, not all people with OCD are perfectionists. While most people with an ambition to succeed and therefore strive to excel in their pursuits, they are not necessarily perfectionists.

Therapy can be very helpful in treating perfectionism. Therapy will help the individual to reframe their thinking to change the end goal of his or her undertakings. A therapist may often help perfectionists recognize that some of the most successful people are not perfectionists at all.

If you are looking for a counsellor or psychologist who offers therapies to address your perfectionism or OCD issues, you may want to search the directory to find a professional whose approach will suit you best.

Sexuality is an important part of society and relationships in particular. Issues with sexuality are usually an indication of more serious relationship problems. Sex should be a natural and healthy part of a committed relationship, but problems can crop up at any time.

One partner might use the frequency of sex as an indication of their value in the relationship and a measurement as to how much he or she is loved, while the other person values intimacy. Unsatisfactory sex might reveal the partners' deeper levels of control, love and trust, and highlight issues that need further exploration.

Many issues can cause unnecessary stress in a relationship, such as negative childhood attitudes to sexuality. Cultural pressures can also place undue demands on a couple. Traumatic sexual experiences can also emerge at any time.

A therapist can help a couple deal with sexuality issues, helping them to make their own rules regarding sex. They can explore issues with sexuality, such as cultural taboos and family myths,  in a safe environment that is free from judgment.

Relationship counselling can help sexuality issues by helping the couple explore physical communication and allowing both partners to understand the meaning of sex within the bounds of the relationships. Power and control are two of the biggest issues with sexuality in a relationship, while sexual withdrawal is a way for one partner to express disappointment and anger, which are forbidden outside the bedroom.

These are just some of the myriad sexuality related issues that may cause problems in relationships, with which therapists could assist. Sexual dysfunction can be assisted through psychosexual therapy.

If you are looking for a counsellor or psychologist who offers sexual counselling and other sexuality issues you may want to search the directory to find a professional whose approach will suit you best.