Online Counselors for Cultural and Family Stress

Mental health is a complex subject in most cultures, particularly the South Asian societies. Although the international dialogue on emotional health and therapy is one that is rapidly increasing, there are still multitudes whose culture and family only prescribe ideal models of stress, guilt, or emotional conflict.

The cultural pressure varies between family commitments and professional demands, gender based roles and marriage norms- the influence is so deep-rooted in our psyche. The question is whether an online counselor will be able to comprehend these special strains. Is it possible to have equally valid online therapy and have a counselor who can rest on the other side of a screen? The simple answer is yes, but you should of course pick the correct therapist.

Possible Cultural Pressures Exist And Might Not Be Spoken

In a great number of families, mental health problems are downplayed or disregarded. Expressions like:

• What is society going to think?
• Whatever, all people have issues they just learn to cope with it.
• The need of therapy Why are you getting therapy? It is all yours.”

This is what can be heard commonly. This leaves an internal struggle of guilt in someone between upholding societal cultural practices and taking care of their emotional concerns.

The reason to talk to somebody who understands is because it is important to find somebody who can see that perhaps talking about the anxiety you are experiencing is a result of external forces, but not only of upcoming deadlines at work, but the societal pressures on you too, that is, society expects you to take on this role and that role but does not expect you to take ownership or own these expectations as your own. An online counselor who is culturally sensitive is also familiar with how to maneuver through the layers without being judgmental.

What Makes Online Counselors Culturally Sensitive?

An online counselor who is not ignorant about culture, not only listens but he/she listens with understanding. This is what distinguishes them:

• Common Culture: They know how family expectations, generational beliefs, and societal roles affect the people.
• Non-Western Lens: They do not view your experiences only based on Western psychology. Rather, they look into cultural specifics of the place.
• Language Comfort: They will be able to converse to you in the language of your choice either it is in Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Urdu or English and make the experience go smooth.
• Holding Values: They do not criticize what you believe in but cooperate to make you walk through beliefs in a manner that preserves your mental well-being.

Most online therapy platforms now allow its clients to filter therapists by language, geographical area, and culture.

The Way of Handling Family Pressure in Online Therapy

Most emotional struggles revolve around family. Either it is continuous comparisons or the pressure of being the perfect child or even being choked by the expectations place on you, these instances may affect your mental health in a very real way. This is where an online counselor, who is trained, can be of assistance:

Non-judgmental validation

They acknowledge that what you are going through is real pain even when your family does not. The initial stage of the recovery procedure is validation.

Emotional Guilt Untangling

Placed guilt; not taking the expected career, not getting settled, putting boundaries, not accepting, etcetera is a cultural expectation that needs to be jail-broken. Online therapist will make you differentiate between guilt and responsibility.

Boundary Setting

Therapists also teach you to say no, to express your needs, and establish emotional boundaries without breaking the trumpeted family values by supposedly disrespecting them.

Conflict Resolution

Be it parent issues, sibling, cousin or in-law drama, communication strategies that allow one to maintain relationships and keep their piece are something an online counselor can teach.

Can Deeper Emotional Problems be treated with Online Therapy?

Yes, online therapy is not less than the offline one in cases a professional is experienced and qualified. It is empathy, understanding and communication ability of the therapist that matter, not being physically present. As a matter of fact, online counseling has other benefits:

• Convenience: Get the assistance anywhere, anytime.
• Confidentiality: You can take a session in your room, and the other people in your family will be oblivious to the fact.
• Inconsistency: You may have to switch therapists in case you relocate to a different city or country.
• Cost: There are many platforms in India that provide affordable or on a sliding scale sessions.

Be it fear of comparison or burnout because of pressure on you by family members, online counseling is an effective and safe way to resolve the issue.

How to Know When You Need an Online Counselor?

You may want to talk to an online counselor in the event of:

• After interacting with family, you are left emotionally drained.
• You feel guilty or you are doubting yourself because of the culture.
• You are under pressure concerning marriage, professions or even life.
• You feel that you can not communicate with any of your home people without being misperceived.
• You feel like you want to be in the first place but at the same time you feel bad being so egocentric.

Therapy does not mean making yourself into somebody you are not; it means taking back your own inner realm so you can live clearly, with self-respect and personal power.

Conclusion

Going into therapy does not imply that you have to renounce your culture or family. It is the art of how to deal with such relationships and still maintain mental peace. The right online counselor does not make you decide between the self and the values, but rather find the balance.

You realize that you do not have to do it all on your own. So next time you start feeling overburdened with family roles and societal pressure or cultural obligations, keep this in mind. The proper online therapy will allow you to start unpacking, healing, and succeed, not losing your values and constantly traveling back and forth.