<p>This September I’ll be attending university in Boston. I’m from NYC and everything I’ve known and love is here. It’s exciting and everything going to explore a brand new city, but with only ~3 months left, it really started to hit me that I’ll be leaving my parents and my home and my friends. I’ve started to doubt this decision even though I don’t really have a choice at this point. I’m sitting here in my bed at home and I am already worried and panicking so I have no idea how I would be able to deal with breaking down while watching my parents leave in September. I know everyone goes through this and I would eventually need to go out on my own and “leave the nest” but what are some ways to make it better? I’m going into this knowing full well that I’ll miss home, but I really need some advice on how to deal with all the changes and eventual meltdowns.</p>
<p>Off of the list someone posted on this forum yesterday:
“You’re gonna cry, especially in the beginning. It never gets easier, you’ll just get tougher.”</p>
<p>I’ve also noticed that there are two types of people regarding how they deal best with leaving home. For one type (the majority it seems) keeping loads of contact and covering your dorm room in pictures of family and friends from home. I tried to follow this advice when I first went to college… and eventually discovered that I’m not a part of this group.
For the second type, we still need to keep some contact, but a dose that’s healthy for us, and pictures just make things a lot worse. During the first semester, I was always on Skype with my mom. Because I somehow convinced myself that since I miss my mom, constant contact should be the logical solution, right? But it wasn’t, and it stopped me from dealing with the problem head on, and it just made it that much worse when I had to turn Skype off. I brought pictures with me, but I didn’t ever really take them out. I took one look at them once, and put them away. They just made me feel even worse. When my mom texted me that first night saying that she’s free to text whenever I want to talk, it was the final straw, and I broke down.
(Not to scare you with these stories… It’s hard for everyone, but keep in mind that I was the kind of person who didn’t even want to be in a room by myself, even when everyone was at home. I slept in the same bed as my little sister every night for that reason… And I had just crossed an ocean for uni.)</p>
<p>You need to find your niche, what your comfortable with in terms of staying connected. For a while, I really hated the fact that I was the 2nd type (after I found that I was), because it felt like it was wrong. That I should stay connected. But (and this applies to everyone) you need to learn to embrace the change, and in order to do that, you can’t spend all your time holding on to the past.</p>
<p>You’re not horribly far from NYC, so I’m sure you’ll be able to visit often. 
Just don’t visit too often. Remember the final sentence of that last paragraph? Find a healthy balance that works for you.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>Keep in mind that right now all you have to think about is how you’re going to have to leave soon. Once you get to school, you’ll be overwhelmed (In a good way!) by everything that is happening around you that you might find yourself forgetting about how homesick you are. And if you’re like me, you’ll never really feel homesick. And if you do end up feeling really homesick, nothing wrong with that! Just know it’s a natural part of moving out. And like the previous poster said, you’re only a train ride away and could easily go home for a long weekend if you needed to. Good luck and have fun at college!</p>