Sometimes it’s the negative thoughts going around your head that are the problem. The longer you let thoughts about missing home and loneliness linger, the worse your symptoms will get. Try instead to turn negativity into positivity. If you find yourself thinking about how lonely you are, tell yourself that you’re going to meet new friends. If you feel anxious, think about the times you’ve felt nervous before and recall that you got through them.
It could be you’re missing your circle of friends, or wish you were back at school playing for the basketball team. If you can isolate a specific activity or interest that’s causing your homesickness, act on that in a positive way. You can’t recreate hometown friends at college but you can search for people with similar interests via clubs and hobbies. Likewise, you could join the college basketball team, where you’ll encounter people with a similar passion to you.
You should remember that it’s not unusual to experience feelings of homesickness and that others are likely going through the emotions too; there’s nothing wrong with it or with letting it out. Getting upset about homesickness is a natural process and one that can actually be therapeutic. Part of dealing with homesickness can come from simply acknowledging that it’s happening and not denying it. Once you’ve established that you are homesick, you may find you can move on.
Overcoming homesickness doesn’t mean abandoning your friends and family from your home entirely, and in fact keeping in regular contact with these people may give you a sense of security and confidence that you need to overcome homesickness. Arrange for regular chats with your parents and best friends via phone, email or web programs like Skype. Visiting home or a friend’s college on a weekend may also help.
Talk to friends from home or to people at your college about what you are going through. Many will be experiencing the same emotions as you and chatting about shared problems might bring you closer together. If this doesn’t help, arrange to see a professional counselor. Your campus office should be able to put you in touch with the college counselor who you can talk about your homesickness with.