Among the immense workload, change in seasons, and the adjustment to school starting, it’s easy to feel homesick even if you don’t want to admit it. Maybe you miss your (definitely more comfortable) bed at home, seeing your family, your pets, and even home-cooked meals. Take a break and plan a weekend to travel back home. However, for some people, home is far away. Here are some tips on how to deal with homesickness when home isn’t so close.
Plan phone calls
Calling home sounds pretty simple but for some, it’s not. In college, people just find themselves having no time for even the simplest things, like a phone call. Some prefer to call their parents, family members, or friends every day and some people call home only once in a while. Whatever your preference is, just make the call. Keeping in touch with your loved ones not only impacts you but also whoever you’re calling. It also helps keep you sane and lets the person know that you’re thinking of them.
Try to Cook a Family Recipe
Let’s face it, dining halls don’t exactly serve gourmet food. It’s easy to get tired of having the same selection and resorting to the salad bar when you don’t like the options you have. It just makes you miss your family’s cooking even more. Even if you’re not the next Masterchef, I recommend that you try to replicate one of your favorite home-cooked meals. It’ll bring back some memories and give you something to do.
Get Involved on Campus
As cliche as this sounds, try and create a home away from home. You may feel too timid to meet other people – that’s completely understandable, but sometimes if you step out of your comfort zone you can find greater comfort. Check out some organizations and clubs that align with your interests. From the cheese club to a film club, you can find people you share common ground with and create a found family of your own.
Explore Your Campus
We’ve all experienced a time in college when we’ve felt lost and disconnected from the people and the surroundings around us. Homesickness can make you feel not only anxious but also misplaced when you’re thrown into a foreign living space. Freshman year, I found myself aimlessly wandering around both my college campus and the city looking for new study spots, places to get a good, reasonably-priced coffee and small local bookstores to check out. I found that finding simple pleasures can help alleviate your homesickness and help you assimilate to your new temporary home.
Homesickness can be felt when you least expect it, but college is filled with an overwhelmingly large number of new opportunities and experiences – especially when going to college in New York City. Remember that there are always solutions out there to alleviate your homesickness, and you are never alone in this great big world.
We hope you enjoyed reading our guide to curing homesickness!