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Those eager to have an international work experience often consider themselves open-minded spirits ready to embrace different ways of living and working. But when the initial high of being in a new country wears off and reality sets in, new expatriates very often go into culture shock. Big time.

“Most expats,” says culture trainer and author Dean Foster, “do not expect to actually go through culture shock to the degree that most actually do.” This compounds a melancholy, which can include irritability, depression or insomnia, that has already started to set in.

When expats relocate to countries they believe will be similar, such as going from the United States to Britain, Foster says there is an “unexpected disappointment of experiencing culture shock.”

For those moving to a totally different culture, he observes, “there is the disappointment at not being the ‘uber-human’ most expats expect of themselves, and the disappointment of not being able to handle something that at first they may have felt fully confident to do.”

But going through the training that Foster and others like him offer can soften the landing. Foster’s program, for example, lasts two days, the first focusing on adjusting to life concerns, the second dealing with understanding the work culture. For US$4,500, the whole family is invited to participate in the class and receive a take-home cultural guide as well as lunch that will be typical of the new country. Foster, who counts Astra Zeneca and Coca Cola among his clients, also offers individual follow-up counseling once the family is on assignment.

Participants go away with a better understanding of how to adjust to “foreign” work and life conditions. They have a “better understanding of their own cultural biases, and of themselves as ‘cultural beings’ in a new environment,” says Foster.

Interestingly enough, many expats who opted out of culture training on their first international assignment are quick to sign up on subsequent stints abroad, Foster notes.

For those who skipped culture training prior to relocation, there are programs available once the shock starts to set in. Kate Zabriskie owns Business Training Works, a Maryland-based firm that is frequently hired to help bridge cultural differences when the adjustment isn’t going well. Zabriskie’s one-day sessions start at US$3,200. “Do you want to learn the hard way or the easy way? A class can make all the difference in the world,” Zabriskie contends.

She also offers pre-departure culture training, which touches on everything from nuanced communication differences to basics of daily life. Though formal training can have great value, even Foster says that at some point there is a lot to be said for “sucking it up and bringing out all the best sense of adventure, good humor and curiosity for new experiences and new cultures can take you far.”