Loneliness in College
Your student will likely be home for the month of December and into January. They might feel disconnected from campus, or are now sharing with you that they were lonely when they were on campus. They may not want to come back to the University of Arizona for the Spring semester (but we hope they do).
Loneliness in college isn’t something the media often portrays. When you see movies you see all the college students having a great time with all of their friends. Everybody has a group and it all seems picture perfect. Maybe you’ve even seen other students you know or family friends’ kids post about their perfect college life all over social media. But what the media in general and social media don’t portray is that a big percentage of college students feel lonely; that it isn’t always (your student’s name) and 35,000 of their closest friends. Sometimes it feels like just (your student’s name) and 35,000 other people who have already found their crew or newest best friend. Watch this YouTube video and you’ll see what Emery figured out about loneliness in college.
After the video did you realize that is what your student is going through? Did you ask yourself what to do about it? We will address some ways you can help your student combat loneliness.
Have you heard of the power of YET? The power of yet can be seen in these statements:
“I haven’t made friends… Yet”
“I haven’t found my fit… Yet”
“I don’t know what I am doing… Yet”
Yet implies a future because some things don’t happen overnight, they take time. Think of your hopes and dreams you have for your student. Many of them you probably know will happen they just haven’t happened…yet. Maybe you want them to be an elementary school teacher or see them graduate college, but it hasn’t happened yet because they’re still in school.
Zoe Forest wrote about ways to combat loneliness at this link and Dr. Cohan wrote about loneliness at this link.
Here are a few of the things they suggest:
- Realize you are not alone in feeling loneliness in college. Many students have experienced it and are experiencing it currently. (Let your student know they’re not alone and that some things take time)
- Keep in touch with family and friends. Just because you start a new adventure at the University of Arizona (or remotely away from Arizona) doesn’t mean you can’t keep in contact with your friends and family. (Encourage your student to stay connected to their Arizona and non-Arizona support systems and networks)
- Meet new people. Join a club, attend a virtual event, talk to people in your classes, or if you have a roommate get to know them. (Encourage your student to seek out new opportunities)
If you believe your student’s loneliness starts to become overwhelming and interfering with their academics, job, or relationships then it might be time for them to seek out help. They can talk to a friend, family members, mentor, someone at CAPS (Counseling and Psychological Services), Wildcats R.I.S.E., etc.
If you need help connecting them to a resource on campus, joining a club, or anything at all don’t hesitate to contact SOS. SOS is here to answer any question at all, just ask. At sos.arizona.edu you can see all the ways to contact SOS whether it be email, chat, text or over the phone.
Links used in this post:
https://www.freshu.io/zoe-forest/8-ways-to-combat-homesickness-and-loneliness-in-college
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/social-lights/201709/the-lonely-college-student