This past year, I have lived some of the best and hardest moments of my life. As I am finishing my freshman year, I thought I’d share a few things that have gotten me through it.
Weekly phone calls to my parents
Depending on how close you are to your parents, this is a great way to ease any homesickness you may feel. Leaving home and my parents was one of the hardest parts of this year. I love spending time with them and the idea of them being four hours away was hard for me to get used to. What has helped me is calling them and trying to maintain the relationship we had at home.
Having a comfortable bed
I don’t know if this is a weird one, but having a comfortable bed has been integral to my having a good year. I live in a dorm, so there is no place to sit down on the couch and relax. I only have my bed and a metal chair so I tried to make my bed comfy with pillows, a mattress topper, and blankets. I’d call the mission a success seeing as I have trouble getting out of my bed every morning.
Having good headphones and a good playlist
Music gets me through every situation bad or good, and this year has been no exception. I bought some headphones for my birthday and they’re one of the best gifts I’ve ever gotten myself. Headphones and good music have gotten me through tough times. They are also just good when you want some time to yourself or don’t want to bother your roommate by playing your show or music aloud.
Planning out alone time
I love my roommate and the people that live on my floor, but sometimes I need a break. My roommate and I know when each other has class and are pretty communicative about where we are, so I always know when I will have the room to myself. College is stressful and just having a moment to myself every day really helps my mental health. I usually just watch a show or try to take a nap, but those few hours are really beneficial to me.
Having one friend you can count on
Obviously having a couple of friends is nice, but I know that isn’t everybody’s case, especially during freshman year of college. Having one friend to get dinner with or go to the mall is key. Making friends was difficult, but everybody wants new friends. When you find people you get along with, it’ll make your time at college much more enjoyable. Personally, what really helped me was being in a Living Learning Community (LLC), so right off the bat I met 20 new people who were all aspiring nursing majors. We all had that in common and started friendships based on that.
Freshman year was full of laughs and cries, but I truly believe that the little things I did to get me through helped me to have an amazing freshman year experience!
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