424 The Professional Counselor | Volume 13, Issue 4 Martin quickly responds, “My brothers and sisters are here, and I live with my sister’s family for now. They are great to be around and help me understand how things work in the U.S. Also, I get to hang out with my nieces and nephews a lot after work, playing video games or going food shopping. I really like eating together with them as a family too. I don’t have the sudden sweating thing with them, and I feel tranquilo [calm] around my family.” Allison continues to the CFI module about the role of cultural identity and explains, “Sometimes, aspects of people’s background or identity can make their problem better or worse. By background and identity, I’m referring to the communities you belong to, the languages you speak, country of origin, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, faith, religion, that kind of thing. For you, what are the most important aspects of your background or identity?” Martin takes a moment to consider and responds, “I mean . . . being a Mexican man is really important to me but also, I have no choice about my skin color and people at my job know I’m an immigrant, which I think is why they treat me differently.” Allison notes this and adds, “I remember you just said you missed some of your friends and family who are still at ‘home.’ Tell me more about that too, please.” Martin smiles and his face lights up as he explains he recently immigrated from Mexico where his parents, other siblings, and other extended family members still reside. “Yes, like I was saying, I miss home because, back there, I wasn’t treated differently. We had a common language, so speaking Spanish felt more comfortable than it does now. Even though I speak English, I feel so much pressure to speak properly or act more like my coworkers. There were no hidden expectations— here I feel like, because I’m not from here, I look darker, and I speak Spanish, I have to fit a mold that I’m not sure exists.” Next, Allison responds, “I hear you saying there are cultural differences and an unspoken expectation about your cultural background that are impacting you and how you’re understanding the situation. Can you tell me more about what you’re referring to specifically?” Again, Martin takes a minute to think and responds, “I think the pressure I feel to fit into a box—because of my darker skin, because I’m Mexican, because I’m a Spanish-speaker—causes confusion for me since I’ve never experienced this and I think it causes confusion for my coworkers too, and then people respond to me in ways that make me question my reality. When I started this new job, my coworkers wouldn’t stop asking me why I spoke Spanish if I was Black, and I didn’t know how to respond. Like, I never really thought about being Black. In Mexico we don’t talk about race, and here it seems this is the only important part of a person. I don’t understand it, and I feel trapped because either I have no choice on how they perceive me, or they make assumptions simply based on my skin color.” Cultural Factors Affecting Self-Coping and Past Help Seeking Allison summarizes Martin’s responses and moves to the CFI self-coping strategies: “What have you done on your own to help you manage those things that happen with your body?” Martin reports that when the feelings happen at work, he goes to the restroom to splash cold water on his face. He also might get a glass of water. Sometimes he goes outside to get fresh air. Once, according to Martin, when it was really bad, he called his sister. Later that day, his sister recommended he contact their primary care physician. The physician ruled out any medical origins to Martin’s symptoms and referred Martin to the counseling center where Allison interns. Because Allison knows Martin never experienced these symptoms before and had already sought medical help, she continues with a modified CFI question on past help seeking: “Martin, you shared this is the first time you experienced this problem; however, I’m wondering if there were other kinds of help you have found to be useful when dealing with difficult situations?” Martin indicates he typically sought help from his siblings first, much like he does now, and secondarily sought guidance
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