Relationships and More

By Meng-lin (Benny) Hsieh, M.Ed., Counseling Psychologist in Taiwan

In my clinical work with couples, I've made a few interesting observations—many of which align with the ideas of Dr. John Gottman, a renowned marriage researcher in the U.S.

By Meng-lin (Benny) Hsieh, M.Ed., Counseling Psychologist in Taiwan

As an international student, perhaps studying abroad might not struggle to make ends meet. However, only if you have experienced it yourself, can you understand how pressure other than money affects your physical and mental condition.

We learn how to be hopeful through our experiences growing up. It is possible to lose hope along the way, but we can also learn to hope again. It involves the process of making space to be able to hear the soft but steady song of hope, which exists within each of us, even in the darkest of times.

If you're an expat and all you see online about what it's like to live in another country are the insta-filtered versions of events, well, I'm here to tell you: I see you. It's okay to be not okay. Instead of trying to avoid these negative feelings, lean into them, hear what they're trying to tell you.

If you were to ask someone what are some healthy relationship characteristics, they might say trust, honesty, respect, affection, partnership... the list goes on and on. All those are important and can help foster a healthy relationship, but what I want to propose here are four fundamental characteristics on which relational health can be built on....

Cross Cultural Relationships face unique challenges. Therapy can help.

Let's take a look at some of the unique advantages of cross cultural relationships, and next week we'll look at how relationship counseling may be able to assist in harnessing those strengths.

What are some challenges and unique strengths that people in cross cultural relationships possess? In the next few weeks, we will be releasing a series of articles that explore these very questions.