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Going off to college for the first time brings a flood of emotions from excitement to homesickness. At first, there is the hustle and bustle of setting up your dorm room which is the fun part but, you need to prepare yourself for the emotions that you are bound to feel later when everything has settled down. Most of us experience a bit of homesickness, that’s to be expected but, there are some things you can do to help avoid falling into missing home too much.
Make Your Dorm Room a Home Away From Home
You will have your corner of the room and you want to do your best to bring comforts from home into your new dorm room.
- Scents – If your room back home had your favorite scents in it, like your perfume or your favorite essential oil then you want to have a little of that where you live now. Aromatherapy is a great mood enhancer. First, you want to make sure that your favorite scent doesn’t offend your new roomy. If they love the scent, by all means, use a diffuser to enhance your dorm room aroma. If they are opposed to your favorite scent then put a little of your oil or perfume on a piece of cardboard and place under your pillow in the morning. When you lay down to go to sleep that night you will be comforted by your familiar aroma. The great thing about creating familiar aromas is it is easy and inexpensive to do.
- Decorate your space – Your new dorm space should be an evolution of the new you. You want to break away from the room you grew up in and reflect who you feel you are as a freshman at college. Don’t repeat the décor or style your home bedroom has, break out with a whole new look and feel. By doing this you will create a fresh new environment of learning and meeting new friends.
- Food storage – Let’s face it we all have our comfort foods and you need to make sure you design a space to store your favorite munchies. A refrigerator and microwave are a must have for a cold beverage or a salty craving like microwave popcorn.
- Closet Organizer – If you were like me when I went off to college, closet space was of the essence. You will be given a certain amount of allocated space for your things so you need to really take advantage of the vertical space. Hanging drawers and shoe storage organizers are very useful ways to expand your closet storage.
Going off to college should be a great time and you just want to be prepared to make it a successful transition. These tips should help you over the homesick bug and to create your very own home away from home.
Images Courtesy of Canva.
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About the Author: Patricia Davis Brown
