How to Deal With Being Homesick at College

How to Deal With Being Homesick at College As exciting as it is to be living the highly anticipated college life, moving away from home certainly has its tough aspects. Although different students experience varying degrees of homesickness, it is only natural for that emotional feeling to come up at least every now and then. But for those who experience it more frequently, necessary forms of support and reassurance are extremely important to get through college in a healthy and happy way. If you do find yourself getting homesick more often than some of your peers, dont be concerned and dont worry that youre not enjoying the college experience as you should be. Youre allowed to miss your family and hometown friends and still be able to appreciate this new world youre in. However, if you dont know how to handle this homesickness just right, you do risk losing sight of the positive experiences of college. The key here is figuring out the best way for you personally to get through this emotional state in such a way that allows you to stay invested in your college career at the same time. Learning to acquire such a stable mindset isnt always easy, especially with so much pressure on you to do so. By identifying ways to feel comfortable with these emotions, consistently staying in touch with your distant loved ones, and recognizing all forms of support available to you, managing these unsettling sentiments can be much more feasible than youd think. Set up regular phone and Skype conversations: Its one thing to simply say youll catch up on the phone soon with an old friend, but incorporating weekly or monthly chats into your schedules can immensely help your ability to stay in close communication. There is something very comforting about the fact that you definitely have a time set up to talk, rather than just assuming and hoping it will happen. Moreover, making sure you are regularly conversing with those family members and friends that you miss so much is vital to staying secure with your relationships with them. If being apart from them is really hurting you, just talking on such a consistent basis will prove to be an effective way of maintaining that closeness. You may be apart physically, but your bonds can stay strong. Have your favorite photos nearby: This is a little thing that helps a ton. With all of our pictures so conveniently stored on Facebook and in our smart phones, we tend to get lazy when it comes to printing them out. Its certainly not unheard of to print out pictures and frankly is still pretty common but college students who have moved away are particularly encouraged to do it. Although you can scroll through your photos online at any time to re-live some old memories, having them posted on the wall right in front of you is a big comfort. When youre working on a killer assignment in your dorm and start randomly feeling lonesome and nostalgic, a nice photo of your family or prom pictures with your friends can really warm up your mood. Taping these pictures up at your desk or by your bed is a small gesture that can immediately make you feel at home in the midst of whatever events you are going through. Here is a great list of 8 things to bring to your dorm roomthat may help you feel more at home. Schedule the right amount of visits: Depending on how far away your school is from your home, this could be easy or it could very difficult. Either outcome, it is something that is worth looking into and executing rightfully. Similar to the routine phone/Skype conversations, scheduling visits ahead of time will make you feel relieved and reassured that you are seeing your family and friends. There is a thin line, though, between visiting too often and visiting just enough. While it is healthy and essential to make sure your visits are more than just rare occurrences, it is advisable to avoid making these visits too frequent. For instance, if you plan these trips both here and there every single weekend, youre ultimately going to have an even tougher time adjusting to living away from home since youll barely have the chance to actually be on your own. The more you see these people, the harder it will be to say goodbye each time. Certainly set aside a good amount of weekends to travel home and/or have your family and friends travel to you, but dont make the situation even harder on yourself than it needs to be by avoiding the reality you are trying to transition into. You may also want to check out this information on how to choose your first college roommateas they may have a large impact on how you adjust to your life away from home. Find things at school that remind you of home: Was there a really fun concert venue in your hometown? A coffee shop you loved going to? A school club you had a blast with? Odds are there are similar places and groups in your new college town. Take some of the things you miss most about home and try to find their equivalents on campus. If music or volunteering was an integral part of your high school career that brought you happiness, join a similar organization now. Specifically joining clubs in college is a terrific way to bond with a tight group of people very quickly, and the results are even better when the group is based on something you genuinely love doing. Find places as well that you just enjoy going to. Youre not going to find exact replicas of the hang-outs you enjoyed back home, but have an open mind and give these new places a chance. You may find something that complements you even better. Here are some great tips to help you choose extracurricular activitiesthat will b est suit you! If you establish such supportive tactics for yourself, youll be calling your campus your second home before you know it. The next time you go back home, you may ironically be feeling a little homesick for college. Always remember that its completely okay to feel this way about both places and that by staying strong with a mature attitude about it, the issue will minimize in no time.

The French Revolution

The French Revolution What Were the Causes and Consequences of the French Revolution? ChaptersFrench Revolution TimelineHow the Revolution Changed Modern-Day FranceThe French Revolution of 1789 is perhaps one of the most famous events of French history.Many of the outcomes and consequences of the revolution have led to several key characteristics that define the political running of modern-day France as well as the values held by the French people.The Revolution marked a key point in French and European history as France transformed from a kingdom to a republic ruled by its people.But what are the circumstances which led to the beginning of the revolution? And what were the results of it?Superprof is here to explain all you need to know about the French revolution and how it laid the foundations for modern-day France! AnnieFrench Teacher 4.89 (9) £20/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors CarolineFrench Teacher 5.00 (13) £25/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors LowriFrench Teacher 5.00 (9) £90/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors MarianneFrench Teacher 5.00 (8) £30/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors ThibautFrench Teacher 5.00 (3) £19/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors AnnickFrench Teacher 5.00 (6) £20/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors DéborahFrench Teacher 5.00 (10) £35/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutors SamyFrench Teacher 5.00 (2) £60/h1st lesson free!Discover all our tutorsFrench Revolution TimelineThe French Revolution of 1789 occurred for a variety of reasons, one of the main ones being the fact that the majority of the French population was unhappy with the way the country was being run in terms of economics and politics.Let’s take a look at a rough timeline of events which took placed before, during and after the French Revolution. ·                 A Difficult Financial ClimateA larger population and an economic boom meant that the 18th century was, for the most part, a period in which the French people enjoyed a higher standard of life than previously.Unfortunately, this period of pro sperity didn’t last long, and the end of the 1700’s saw a sharp downturn in the country’s economic stability as France’s leaders were faced with the debts accumulated whilst embroiled in various wars against the British in the American Revolution.The conflicts in which France took part were responsible for the country's debt ¦ source: VisualhuntThe reigning monarch at the time was King Louis XVI, who was to become the last monarch of France.In an attempt to solve his nation’s financial issues, the King turned to his financial advisors, whose opinion he could not have disagreed with more: that the French taxation system should be reformed.Louis was sure that there must have been another way for him to save his country from bankruptcy, so he sacked his advisors and turned to Charles de Calonne, his controller general, instead.Calonne advised King Louis that in order to raise funds to pay off the national debt, the French nobility and clergy â€" two groups of people who were previously exempt from tax â€" should now be liable to pay it.Once again, this advice was badly received by King Louis, but Calonne went ahead and tried to impose this new tax. As predicted, this did not go down well, and the aristocracy rejected Calonne’s demands.As King Louis XVI and Calonne scratched their heads, the country was driven further into economic crisis. In addition to the financial hardship, there was a feeling of frustration present within every sector of society. ·                 The Questioning of the Ancien RégimeWhile the aristocracy took offence at Calonne’s attempt to use their money to pay off the national debt, the rest of the population had already had enough of the way the country was being run.Years of poor crops made food expensive and drove France’s peasantry (known as the Third Estate), which made up the vast majority of the population, further into poverty under the feudal system while wealthy landowners contributed little to the state.In thei r confusion, King Louis XVI and Calonne arranged to meet with the Estates-General in 1789, a body representing the three sectors of French society, to discuss a solution: the clergy (First Estate), nobility (Second Estate) and the peasants (Third Estate).During the time before the meeting, each estate put together lists of their issues which were to be raised with the King. For the Third Estate, one of these issues was representation in the assembly. Although they accounted for ninety-eight percent of the population, the vote of the Third Estate could still be overruled by that of the First or Second.The importance of social status drove the call of political reform and set the scene for revolution, and the meeting did not go as the King has envisaged. Following the rejection of the Third Estate’s call for equal voting rights, they left the Estates-General and formed the National Assembly, which, given its popular advantage, was able to declare itself sovereign ruler of France. ·                 The National AssemblyThe formation of the National Assembly was the first major step towards revolution, and once its members had taken the Tennis Court Oath, revolution was on the cards.By taking the Tennis Court Oath, the National Assembly vowed to not disband until France had a new constitution. The Oath is so called because it took place on a tennis court near the palace of Versailles as the Assembly had been locked out of their usual meeting room there by King Louis XVI.The National Assembly continued to meet at Versailles while it was drafting a new constitution, but while there was a feeling of hope among French citizens, the population was also fearful that the King would attempt to regain control by mobilising his troops.This fear was addressed by acts of violence against symbols of the monarchy and power in the capital. The most notable attack, and the one which is believed to have signalled the beginning of the French Revolution was the storming of the Bas tille. ·                 The Storming of the BastilleThe Bastille was a fortress which had been built to protect Paris during the Hundred Years War which was being used as a prison. It was seen as a symbol of the abuse of power of the French royal family and aristocrats, and, knowing that it housed arms, the disgruntled Parisians attacked it, taking cannons and gunpowder as well as setting the prisoners free.The rebellious atmosphere also took hold of those outside of the city, and as the storming of the Bastille signalled the end of feudalism, rural peasants left their restrictive contracts and vandalised their landlords’ property.France’s debt problem was eventually solved by nationalising the land owned by the Church.Not only did this save France’s economy, but it also gave the lower-classes the chance to own property of their own.Bastille Day is celebrated every year on the 14th July ¦ source: Visualhunt - stephen.boakThe anti-feudalist fever which had swept the nation wa s put in writing with the Declaration of the Rights of the Man and of the Citizen. This Declaration was a document which inspired much of France’s post-revolution constitution.The document stated that all French citizens would have equal rights regardless of social class as well as free speech. One of the most important parts of the Declaration was the article on the end of feudalism and tax immunity.Several aspects of the Declaration of the Rights of the Man and of the Citizen can be seen in the French constitution of today.However, although it seemed that the National Assembly was successfully implementing their ideas, new problems had come to light within the Assembly itself, when it came to addressing the controversial topic of the monarchy which left the National Assembly divided. ·                 Controversy Around the Role of the MonarchyThe groups of each side of the argument, the Girondins (who were in favour of giving the monarchy some constitutional power) and the Jaco bins (who wanted to abolish the monarchy altogether and form a republic) were at loggerheads.The first constitution reflected both sides of the argument, and the King was given the power to veto decisions made by the government.A Legislative Assembly was elected to run the country, and war was soon declared on Prussia and Austria as the Assembly feared a counter-revolution by the noble Frenchmen who had fled there. While they were dealing with this potential threat, the Jacobins started a campaign of violence against the King.This ended in the replacement of the Assembly by the newly-named National Convention. This was the government which abolished the French monarchy and ordered the execution of King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette, his wife in 1793.The monarchy has been abolished and the Jacobins had reached their goal, but the threat of a counter-revolution was too much for the Jacobin leader, Maximilien Robespierre, who condemned 15,000 people to death in what was known as the R eign of Terror.Robespierre’s life was also brought to an end when the court ruled that his killing spree was no longer helping to secure the safety of France.My Superprof tutor was really great about touching on French history during our French classes London!How the Revolution Changed Modern-Day FranceThe French Revolution completely reshaped the country’s political and social landscape.Signs of the Revolution of 1789 are everywhere in French life. For instance, the 14th July is a national holiday in France, known as Bastille Day, as it marks the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille. French citizens celebrate the event which signalled the beginning of the French Revolution which made for a fairer society in which all men are born equal.The French motto, too, has its origins in the French Revolution. The phrase ‘liberté, égalité, fraternité’ (liberty, equality, fraternity) was first used in a public context by Maximilien Robespierre in 1790 and has become a promin ent feature of French life in all aspects.If you enjoyed this article, why not check out our blog on French military history?