How to Cure Homesickness at University
No matter how much you are loving your university experience it's only natural to feel homesick sometimes. Carmen is here with some useful tips for combatting homesickness when it strikes.
It can be difficult to be away from home sometimes. You miss all those little things you enjoy back home. Despite the excitement of embarking on to a new life in university and living independently, the feeling of homesickness is inevitable.
Whether you’re from the other side of the world or an hour’s drive away, homesickness still feels the same. Living on your own takes guts! It is natural to feel homesick and don’t worry, you’re not the only one.
If you are feeling homesick at university here are some tricks on how to overcome it.
Bring something that reminds you of home:
It may be a soft toy, your favourite blanket or pillow, anything comforting that reminds you of home. This will cheer you up when you’re feeling a wee bit upset or having a bad day in general. You don’t have to feel embarrassed about bringing a soft toy to your university halls, because chances are, I’m sure your housemates will have toys from home laying around in their rooms too!
Be more involved in extra-curricular activities:
Keep yourself busy, be it playing sports, volunteering or organizing an event. If you keep yourself busy you might not feel homesick as much. Especially as you are surrounded by company of friends. It is better than being enclosed by the four walls in your room, overthinking, because then you just feel worse. You’ve got to enjoy the university experience!
Go out and explore the city:
It’s wise to not spend too much time cocooning in your room. You need to go around and explore, also take in to and get used to the new environment that you’re in. Perhaps, you’ll be able to make some new friends or just enjoy some time exploring. The more you try to embrace your new environment, the sooner it will start to feel familiar and like your home.
Try not to compare your university experience with your friends in different universities:
Sure once in a while, you see yourself scrolling through your friends’ social media- Instagram, Facebook, and seeing their life throwing parties and having a whale of a time. You may be feeling like you’re left out or could not measure up to the fun that they’re having. But remember, everyone has different experiences in their lives in university, and do not expect every single day will be the best one of your life.
Always look at the bright side:
You won’t always be in university forever. It’s just a phase of life. Therefore, try and enjoy every part of your time in university, because in future, you wouldn’t want to be looking back and thinking of the times when you should have done this and didn’t. Moreover, making new friends- socializing surely will be able to help cope with homesickness and put it at bay.
Call Home for a Good Chat:
Being homesick at University can be hard and sometimes you just need to talk to the people we miss. Don’t forget you don’t have to be out living the “high life” all the time, instead take an evening to call home and talk about your experiences with your family or friends. It may give you a fresh perspective about all the exciting changes when you get to share them with people you care about.
If you are really finding a very hard time in overcoming homesickness, be sure to talk to someone about it. It may be a close friend or a personal tutor. They should be someone you can rely on to give you good advice.
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