Just when you finally got adjusted to living at home over winter break, it’s time to move back to campus. If you struggle with feeling settled, making campus feel like home again, and getting back into a routine: I feel you.
My sister and I flew into South Carolina this week to move me back to school and I was not excited about it. I’d gotten very comfortable in my overly large, worn-in chair in the living room at home, that I would only get up from for meals. I spent my winter break catching up with old friends, reading, watching movies, and sleeping. Lot’s of sleeping.
Returning to campus means waking up at a decent hour, having responsibilities, and resuming my social life. While I’m excited to see my friends and have purpose for my day, it’s overwhelming.
My friend had texted me and asked if I was happy to be back and honestly, I’m not. Not yet. However, I have come to terms with this feeling as it happens every time I transition from home to school for winter and summer breaks. Simply put- I don’t like change and this is a big one.
My freshman year was particularly the hardest. I remember crying in my dorm room the day my dad dropped me off after winter break. My dorm didn’t feel like home. It took me a month to get back into the groove of things and be truly comfortable.
The trick to getting settled in is different for everyone. For some people, it’s jumping back into college life as it was when you left it. For me, it is slowly easing back into it.
How Do I Make College Feel Like Home Again?
- Organize everything in my room, making sure each thing has a place and is similar to the way it was at home.
- Laundry, just the smell of detergent itself is so calming to me.
- Reconnect with my friends, slowly and intentionally. Catching up with everyone during the first week is too much for me.
- Write out my month at a glance on my whiteboard.
- Put all of my assignment due dates in my planner so I don’t feel like I am going into the first week blind.
- Design a daily schedule including waking up, meal times, classes, study hour, and working out.
- Stock my fridge and pantry with healthy foods to make meals I loved at home.
- Buy fresh flowers or light a candle, both symbolize home to me.
- Avoid jumping straight back into a party lifestyle after a month of not drinking very much. Maybe this means going out just once a week for a bit, or having a wine night.
- Surround myself with people that I can relax around without needing to be doing something. If you haven’t found those people thus far- maybe it is because your friendship hasn’t grown to that point yet. Invite someone over to watch a movie or to paint, create that relationship.
- Schedule myself some down time
- Have at least one thing to look forward to in each week.
However you chose to adjust to college life after winter break, understand that routines take time. Be optimistic about your spring semester and all of the new opportunities that are coming your way. I can’t wait to see how you grow in this new season.
