Hi, I’m Amy, I’m Laura, and today we are going to give you a few tips on how to cope
with homesickness.
University might be the first time that you are away from home, so obviously homesickness
might be something you’re worried about, or something that you’re currently feeling.
It’s kind of cheesy to say this, but you’re not alone. Most people get homesick.
It can be quite scary getting a new environment and getting used to all these new people and
changes in your life and just living alone or sharing a flat with people.
But it’s also a really exciting time, so our first tip is just to remember to keep busy.
If you throw yourself into university in the first couple of weeks then you kind of won’t
even have time to get homesick. Like me and Laura just went for it straightaway, we
went to all our lectures, we signed up to our societies in Freshers’ Week, and it
felt like a long day, but you felt so happy to be actually having a life at university
and getting on really well. Like, achieving something really helps the homesickness to
go away.
Tip number two is talk to new people whether that be in your flat or on your course.
Making new friends is a great way to feel comfortable and settled at university.
Following on from what Laura said, societies are a really great way to meet new people.
Like, when I first started, I started doing some societies that I did at home before, like
the same sort of hobbies and that made me feel like really at home.
Tip number three to help you deal with homesickness is definitely to decorate your university
room, whether you’re in a house, or a flat, you can definitely make your own space feel
more like at home. Put up posters, pictures of friends and family, just little trinkets
that make it feel more homely.
But also, our tip number four: explore your surroundings. As well as making your room
feel like home, explore the city and your surroundings, and campus especially.
In my Freshers’ Week, I went with one of my new friends, my flatmate, into Nottingham
city, and that was really great, it was my first time seeing the city and getting to
know my surroundings. It just made me feel a lot more settled in to leave my little bubble
of my room and my flat, and it just really made it feel like home.
And that leads us on to tip number five, which as well as making new friends, don’t forget
about your old friends. Make sure that you set some time for them, to make sure that
you catch up with them, and make sure they’re OK.
Skype is also definitely a great way to help you overcome homesickness, because you
can videochat your friends and family and it’s just really nice to connect with them
in that way. And it feels like you’re in the same room, and it’s definitely convenient
if you can’t get home.
Saying that, our tip number six is that if you’re still struggling with missing home,
even if you are skyping friends and family, the University has great counselling services
in Portland Building, The Students’ Union. You can just go and make an appointment
and chatting to someone professional who can give you really good guidance is a great way
to overcome your feelings and put you in a more positive mindset.
And these are there all year round, it’s not just in Fresher’s, because I was, even towards
the end of the year, I still got homesick when I started to get anxious about exams.
And if you do feel like that, it’s completely normal. You don’t have to be embarrassed
about it, and there’s always people there that you can talk to.
Now tip number seven is there is also Nightline, which is a confidential way to chat to people
on the phone. If you’d rather not meet someone face-to-face to talk about how you’re feeling,
Nightline is always there. They’re specifically tailored to students and you’ll probably
get the number in Freshers’ Week because it’s a real good point of call for any problems
you’re having. But they’ll definitely know how to help you with homesickness as well.
And our last tip is, if you’re really homesick, if you make something to look forward to,
if you make a date that you can actually go home and you make firm arrangements, then
having something to look forward to, like going home, will really get you through the
weeks leading up to it. This may not be possible for everyone, especially
if you’re an international student. And this might not be possible, but even if you
make a firm arrangement to Skype home or just look forward to Christmas, Easter, Summer.
And lastly, don’t be afraid to start your new life. Homesickness is just the feeling
of missing what you had, but just remember Uni is like a complete new start for you,
and you can make it whatever you want.
Try not to worry too much about homesickness. It’s completely normal and hopefully Nottingham
will feel like a second home to you really quickly anyway.
Make sure you make friends, which you will, have fun and enjoy yourself.
Bye.