Homesickness Tips

Whether at IMSA or in college, being away from home can take a toll on your well-being — and that is completely normal. Although there are many exciting activities for building a community on campus, it can still be difficult to be away from your family and friends back home. This issue, often dubbed as homesickness, can be difficult to navigate, but The Acronym is here with some tips on how to overcome it!

Plan Periodical Visits

Although this tip may be easier for people who live closer to campus, planning periodical trips home can help ease into the process of living on campus, decreasing feelings of homesickness with each visit. This could include going home every few weekends or visiting just for a day. However, it is crucial to put time aside to explore the new environment. A good idea could be to invite your family and friends on campus for a day and go to nearby malls or restaurants to catch up. This is a great way to stay connected with those at home while keeping campus at arm’s distance. 

Stay Connected (Virtually)

Especially for those who can’t go home as often, staying connected through online resources will allow you to feel much closer to those at home. Stay in touch with your family through phone calls, social media, or emails. Hearing some advice from family members or friends from home can have a surprisingly positive impact on your day.

Take Risks

Taking risks and getting out of your comfort zone at IMSA can substantially help with adapting to this new environment. This could include joining clubs that you normally wouldn’t take part in, going to events outside of school, and even hosting your own passion projects for the student body.

Take Time For Yourself

Although homesickness is a normal part of adapting, one of the best ways to address it is to directly take time to reflect on those feelings. Whether it’s only for 30 minutes on a Wednesday night or a couple of hours over the weekend, understanding how your habits have changed and accepting this new pattern will help with accepting such feelings of missing home.

For many people on campus (or at some point in their life), missing home can be a difficult obstacle to conquer, but with the right methods, it can be turned into a strong motivation to explore a new environment.