Homesickness

Homesickness: being ''sad or depressed from a longing for home or family while away from them for a long time'' (from dictionary.com)

When does homesickness usually strike?
Homesickness certainly depends on the individual student. Some exchange students do not experience homesickness at all and others get homesick on the very first day of their arrival.
When that is said, a lot of exchange students tend to get homesick within the first 2-3 months and around holidays that are big in their home country - such as Christmas, for example.

Remember that there is a big difference between missing your family and friends and actually being homesick.

The best ways to deal with/avoid homesickness
- Expect it - it is far easier to deal with homesickness if you are prepared for it to strike you.

- Get involved - do fun stuff with your family, friends or join in on some school activities to get your mind off your family and friends in your home country. 

- Always have something to look forward to

- Avoid contact with family and friends from your home country - they are far away and cannot help you with your homesickness, they can only make it worse, although that sounds odd.

- Acknowledge that everything does not have to be perfect - throughout your exchange there will without doubt be ups and downs. Don not worry about the 'down ones', everyone experiences those, and in the end, the bad experiences actually tend to be the ones that mature you the most.

- Make deals with yourself - Try starting out by saying to yourself: ''I want to be in my host country for at least a month''. Then after a month make a new deal with yourself: ''I want to stay until Christmas''. When Christmas arrives, set a new goal, and continue doing this. At some point you will not feel the need to set any more goals.

- Remember; you are going home again - This is a very important one. When homesickness strikes you have to remember that you are going home again at some point. Remind yourself that an exchange is a privileged once in a lifetime opportunity. Keep on fighting your homesickness so you can get to enjoy your incredible year!