Going home to your family can be both exciting and frustrating. You go throughout the semester being free to do whatever you please, and now you’re going home for the holidays and you may be feeling both nervous and excited.
It is important to grow and find yourself in college, but often, as you change and grow, it can be hard for your family to understand you. If this isn’t your first year, then you fully understand how difficult it can be to return home.
However, if this is your first year in college, you may not be expecting the shock of returning home to Mom telling you to clean your room, Dad asking you to mow the lawn and little sibling bothering you. The holidays can be frustrating, and dealing with them can be difficult.
Stress control, patience and communication are the best ways to combat the frustration of going home. Stress control may be hard but possible, especially with the hope and knowledge of returning back to school. The best stress control is to relax.
This ties in with finding something to do. Whether it be playing games, going to see your old friends or watching TV, keeping yourself having a good time will keep you from going insane at home. The hardest part of the entire break will be patience.
The best thing to remember is that your family misses you, isn’t used to the new you and still sees you as a kid. You have to keep telling yourself that it will be OK, school will return and eventually all will be back as it was.
But what if all this doesn’t work, you may ask? Sometimes the best way to deal with a situation is communication. It may be best to sit down with your parents and explain to them how you feel — to show them that you are growing and that they need to let you. With these methods, it’s possible to overcome the frustrations of going home.
Just remember, you’re not the only student going through this.
Advice columnist Ryan Thompson is a psychology sophomore and may be reached at [email protected]
