Coming to university is an incredibly daunting experience and it can be difficult prioritising your mental health when everything is moving so fast.
It is easy to get swept up in the expectations of fresher’s week when it is made out to be full of constant fun and activity, when the reality for many students is instead a wildly disappointing week, where loneliness begins to creep in.
Watching your peers immediately form seemingly tight-knit groups is difficult to see when all you want is a single person talk to.
How do you combat this feeling when you feel like the only person in world going through it?
It is important to remember that every student you meet will have, at one point, felt immensely lonely. It is a common effect of starting a new chapter in your life.
A few strategies to help deal with this feeling include joining university societies, keeping in touch with hometown friends, and remembering to prioritise what you enjoy.
It’s very cliché to say joining societies helps combat loneliness, but it is a cliché because it’s true. Any university will have an abundance of societies that include varying interests, so it is an amazing opportunity to meet like-minded people who share your interests.
Simply surrounding yourself with other people who enjoy what you enjoy will make you feel less alone. Societies create a feeling of community, so whether you join one in week one of first year or semester two of third year, you will immediately be accepted.
For some it may be difficult to keep in touch with hometown friends when everyone has split off into different cities and are all experiencing new things. Remaining in each other’s lives is an important way to remind yourself that you do have people to talk to, especially when you are stuck in your room, scared to talk to your new flatmates.
Make sure you keep to your hobbies. These activities keep your mind busy and your mental health up. The lonely feeling gets pushed to the side when you are doing something you enjoy – so prioritise this. If this hobby relates to a society, then you have the perfect opportunity to meet new people.
So, try to combat the loneliness you may feel as a student in any way you can, because you only experience university once in your life. Why waste this experience with feeling low?
Featured Image Credit: Pexels Free Photos
Braw Magazine co-editor for Stirling University’s Brig and a third year English and Journalism student.
