Home sickness

Everyone else is having a great time...I thought Uni was going to be cool...I can’t seem to meet anyone I like...they’re not like my mates...I keep wanting to cry...I miss my Mum and - I don’t know what to do.

Feeling like this? Well don’t worry, so are half the other people you meet, particularly those who say that everything is great and they’re having a reeeally COOL time. It’s normal to feel a bit lost when you first start. Everything is new, you don’t know where to go most of the time, you might not even have much contact time in lectures/seminars/tutorials on some courses, so what are you supposed to do for the rest of your time?

Remember that everyone else is in the same boat, so it’s ok to go up to people and introduce yourself; they might be quite grateful. You don’t always meet your best mates when you first arrive, so be prepared to make some changes, meet other people. For sure, you won’t meet anyone staying in your room, so try to get out, sit around in the coffee rooms, go to the bars, try to chat to people in the residences.

Follow ET’s advice - Phone home, have a chat. Missing your Mum is ok you know, everyone else is!

Consider joining one of the societies or getting involved in some activity you wouldn’t normally dream of doing.

Try the Students Union or the Student Advice Centre.

If it’s any comfort, the doctors and nurses are seeing a lot of people crying, feeling miserable and wishing they weren’t here. Sometimes it can be appropriate to help with short-term medication if insomnia is a real problem, but for the majority of people, a chat and some reassurance that their reaction is normal, is all that is needed.

Sometimes the feelings of unhappiness and isolation can trigger a tendency to anxiety and depression, if you are concerned this may be the case, seek help earlier rather than later; talk to the counsellors; ask your Union where they are, or see the nurse or your doctor.

Further information

This article published on
28 November 2005

Next review date 11/1/2013

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Head stuff

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