How To Deal With Homesickness

Before anything, I would like to say that this article is the one I passed on our English Communication subject under the topic Problem Solution Essay. So please, expect that you’ll be reading a formal one, which is really uncommon in this page. I think, it’s my first time to post a formal article here.

Moving on, as I said in my article, the Best Place on Earth, home is familiar. Home is comfortable. Home is where the heart is. But sometimes, one outgrows home, needs something more and leaves home for somewhere new, exciting and lonely? Well, that is the problem of many college freshmen. They leave home and temporarily live in places near the school they are attending. This may result to homesickness. And so, what happens when they can’t shake the feelings and they dig themselves deeper and deeper into the hole of homesickness?

Homesickness is a feeling that veils a person when he is away from the comfort zone of his home. When he is homesick, he might feel nostalgic for familiar things like family, friends, pets, house, or neighborhood. He can miss something as simple as his bed or the tree outside his window. Homesickness leads to uneasiness and the person tends to become sad, upset and sometimes, afraid and depressed. Some college freshmen go through the bouts of homesickness, even if they don’t admit it. But don’t lose hope because there are solutions for this.

Mayfield on her essay, “Twice the College Advice”, gave ways in handling homesickness. First thing she said is to stay busy. Getting involved in activities that interest the homesick person will help in a couple of ways. This will allow him to form new circles of friends. Through this, he’ll barely have time to miss home. Second is to communicate with family and friends often. Just because he’s going away from home doesn’t mean he’ll have to miss out on what’s going on with his loved ones. But too much communication with his family is not advisable because it will be hard for him to adjust if he has less time for his new friends. And last is to realize that the homesick person is not alone. He should ask around and he’ll find that plenty of others are experiencing homesickness, too. Chances are they’ll have even more suggestions on how to cope with it.

Homesickness hurts, but it does got better in time especially if people will follow the tips above. Remember that homesickness is not a sign of weakness or immaturity. It is completely a normal feeling for students who have left home for the first time and changed their lives in a drastic way.