5 ways to deal with homesickness at university
Leaving home for the first time isn’t easy and homesickness is very common, up to 70% of students experience home sickness in the early days of university. So why do we feel homesick and what can we do about it?
Why do we feel homesick?
Homesickness is a feeling of emotional distress that arises when you’re in a new and unfamiliar environment. It can be caused by a variety of things such as a disruption in your lifestyle, feelings that you don’t belong or if you’re having difficulty adapting to a change to name a few things.
This feeling is of course not ideal when you’re trying to settle into your Lancaster student accommodation with new people. But the feeling won’t stay forever, and you can overcome it. Here are 5 ways you can.
1. Keep yourself busy
When you’ve moved into your student accommodation in Lancaster and you’re missing home you might be tempted to just stay in your room and go through it alone but isolating yourself might make it worse. Try to keep yourself busy by organising trips with your housemates or new friends, just send them a text and see if they’re up for it, after all maybe they’re feeling the same.
Another solution is joining an extracurricular activity. Go along to your universities freshers fair and see if there’s any sports team you’d fancy joining.
You could even try to get a part time job to help you meet new people. A part-time job is also a great thing to add to your CV.
2. Explore your surroundings
Being in unfamiliar territory is adding to your feelings of homesickness so why not go out and explore. Set some time aside and go out and get to know the town or city you’ll be calling home.
Leave your Lancaster student housing and go for a walk, visit the shops or go and check out your uni campus so you’ll be prepared for where you need to be when you start classes. Make the most of it and time to reduce any anxiety you have at the start.
3. Try not to compare your experience to other people
When students start their university experience, it’s often expected that you’ll be out partying and being social every night. But your experience doesn’t have to be like this if you’d prefer it not to be.
Don’t look at social media stories or posts and think you’re doing something wrong because you’re not having as much “fun” as them. What they post is a quick snapshot into their life so try not to compare, you might not be missing out on much.
4. Keep in touch with home
A quick phone call or text message can make you feel a lot better about your situation and can close that gap of feeling so far away. You can go back home and visit any time you want but try not to be in contact too much or it might make you feel worse. Instead after a quick chat with family and friends back home, ask a housemate if they’d like to watch a movie or ask them about their course.
5. Ask for help
There’s no shame in asking anyone for help. Speak to the university if you’re struggling with your course or having issues with your accommodation. Don’t allow yourself to suffer in silence. Sorting out any issues you have will release some stress and make you feel slightly better.
If you’re still feeling down, universities do have mental health services to support you if you’re really struggling so contact them and see how they can help.
Remember you’re not alone, you’re not the only one feeling homesick and it’s a normal feeling. It will eventually pass, and you’ll be settled into university and your Lancaster student accommodation in no time.
