Homesick tips

By: Amanda Reid, Columnist

As much as I love every second of my trip to Spain, I do miss home.  My friends post pictures on Instagram, I hear songs that remind me of home and Skype is the only way I can talk to my family.

It also doesn’t help that everyone here wears Yankees hats, which only make me more homesick for my Ravens and Orioles.  Most of the time, my homesickness hits the hardest when I am trapped inside doing my homework.

There are a lot of different things people try to do to shake that feeling of missing all the comforts of home, and these are the ones I find most helpful.

There is literally nothing that helps getting rid of homesickness more than going outside and meeting a friend.  Go out for a beer, coffee, wine or whatever suits your fancy.

Next, never be embarrassed to tell your friends here you’re homesick.  Everyone has their days and it’s essential to rely on people here to help you get over it.

There was one day in particular where I woke up wanting nothing more than to see my dog and everyone at home, and my friend Emily saved the day. We met up in the city center and she had gone to a bakery before meeting me thus surprising me with pastries. The two of us then went to McDonalds so we could have a little taste of home.

If your friends are busy, go do something touristy or even just take a walk.  Going outside reminds me why I’m here and how much I love it here.  If the weather is gross, talk to your host family or at the very least go sit in the living room instead of trapping your homesickness in your room.

Another crucial piece of advice: never, ever call home when you get homesick. Calling home, texting your friends back home and thinking about what you would be doing with them if you were home and not abroad will only make your homesickness worse.

Of course talking to your family and friends will always give you pangs of homesickness, but talking to them when you have that overwhelming homesick feeling is a terrible idea.

Missing home is a part of the trip, and some of my favorite memories have been after making plans with my friends here to save me from my homesickness.

So if the homesick feeling strikes, go make memories and try and focus on the moment.  Whenever I consider planning a trip home, I remind myself that I will never be on a trip like this again and that I need to take advantage of every second I have here.

 

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