手心出汗、心跳加速、大脑中却一片空白……很多人在说外语时都有这些紧张不安的表现。尤其是当你忽然被提问，一瞬间无论怎么搜肠刮肚，也找不到合适的词表达。也许你眼前的人正一脸困惑，而你则感到颜面尽失……

对大多数人来说，用母语交流就像吃饭睡觉一样轻而易举，而相比之下，用外语来沟通，真的更费脑子——除了要费尽心思寻找合适的表达方式，还要克服心理上的焦虑。这个焦虑有个专门的词，叫“外语焦虑”（foreign language anxiety，简称FLA)。

Sweaty hands, racing heartbeat, mind going blank, uneasy, nervous, embarrassed… If you speak English as a second language, the above might not sound unfamiliar to you, especially if you are caught on the spot, struggling to figure out what words to use to save your face. Nevertheless, the person in front of you gets more and more confused…

While speaking one's native language seems so natural and easy, trying to command a foreign language requires extra mental resources — finding the right words and calming foreign language anxiety (FLA).

2020年初爆发的疫情，到现在已经持续很长一段时间了。什么时候能彻底结束恢复正常谁也不知道，但大家都希望能早点恢复到以前的样子，我们就可以回国看望父母或者朋友了，大家也可以出国旅行了。疫情期间，在美国境内飞行看望朋友或者家人相对容易很多。但对于那些家人和朋友都在美国境外的人来讲，见面就很难了。国际航班全面取消，各种限制，导致节假日跟家人见面就更加困难了。

It has been a long journey since the pandemic has spread globally beginning January 2020. How long will it take to be back to normal? No one knows the answer, but we all hope that it will end soon, so that we can travel internationally. It’s relatively easier to fly domestically in the US to see friends, relatives and family if they are in another state. But, it’s not quite the case for those who have families who live outside of the United States. Traveling internationally has prevented many of us from reuniting with families to celebrate any holidays.

It’s not uncommon for people in the Chinese community to experience doubt or uncertainty about the idea of receiving counseling services. People may feel uncomfortable seeking help for their mental health issues when they are experiencing something difficult in their lives. While counseling can be helpful for addressing stressors and mental health concerns, there are a number of reasons why people may not be seeking out the counseling services that can help them. In this blog, I’ll be talking about 5 barriers to seeking mental health therapy in the Chinese community, and 5 reasons why people should consider counseling services.

作为一名身处海外的华人的心理咨询师，我能理解遇到一场突如其来的疫情时，我们想的是家，亲人，祖国，或者正在着急寻找一个安全的避难所。可是我们如今留在美国，为了读书，工作或者安居，可能很难突然放弃一切，放下当下所有，不顾一切的离开。 那么异国他乡的你是不是在这个时候会感觉更加的孤单，难过，和无助？感受不到亲人和家给你带来的温暖和依靠。面对远离了知己好友在身边玩耍和嬉闹的日子。以及工作上的解雇，无薪休假的选择，和没有了薪资的保障。而让你变得更加着急，忧郁，和无奈？那么我们可以先看看自己是否已存在患有抑郁症或者焦虑症的可能性。但是在自我检测的时候，不需要紧张，认识问题是解决问题的第一步。也不用马上对号入座，立马断定自己就是重度抑郁症，或者是严重焦虑症患者，真正需要诊断的话，还需要考虑很多其他因素。