The whirlwind of a mental freshers’ week, millions of new faces, societies, events and tons of general fun that is to be had when you first head off to uni, will surely leave little to no time for pining over left behind pets, cleanliness and, oh yeah, those all-important family members.

But as everything starts to die down and the washing up pile starts to creep up, the comfort of home can seem a long way away. So here are a few tips on keeping homesickness at bay…

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1. Create the perfect bedroom

Well empty walls and bare shelves are only going to make you feel miserable and miss your room back home even more. So there is a simple solution – take it with you!

Pack everything up from your bedside lamp to the dusty ornaments in the corner that you've never really liked and there'll be nothing to miss! Having a nicely decorated, homely room can make all the difference but just be warned, there'll almost certainly be the odd ‘do you really need to take this?’ comment from mum and/or dad. Just ignore them.

2. Be snap happy

Swamping your walls with photos of family and friends can make you feel right at home without the unwanted nagging of having to clean your room.

Sites such as snapfish offer you free prints as a new customer so really you've got no excuse - do it now and you can wake up to great memories every morning. Now all you need is a big pack of white tack (wouldn’t want you to lose that deposit now would we).

3. Keep busy!

Rather than moping your way around the flat/house whenever you feel the homesickness creeping in, go and find an activity to do that’ll take your mind off it. Join societies, try new things, meet new people - the time will fly by before your next visit or phonecall home.

Another benefit of getting out and actually doing stuff is that you’ll have something to talk about when they ask what you’ve been up to! For tips on meeting new people make sure you check out these useful articles...

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4. Send out the invites

Many people can’t afford to travel home during semesters, so instead of forking out on train tickets, get home to come to you. Once you’re settled in and feel like you can blag being slightly knowledgeable about the area, invite friends and family to come and stay so you can show them all the local attractions.

They probably don’t want to intrude on your precious time at uni but if you’re really missing home, I’m sure they’ll be more than happy to go out on a jolly and see what you get up to. Plus, you don’t want to be that person that goes home every weekend. Think of all the Saturday afternoon pub crawls you’d miss out on!

5. Skype

You might be hundreds of miles apart but there's no better way to close the gap than with a nice little Skype session every now and then. A great way to talk to loved ones and see the goldfish you now suddenly long for after years of disregard. And what’s more... it’s free!

6. Talk it out

Trust me, you won’t be the only one sat on your bed clasping photos and tattered teddy bears, pretty much everyone is in the same boat. So why not do something radical and talk to each other if you’re feeling a bit lonesome.

After all, it’s not like they won’t understand what you’re going through! There's a good chance that no matter how bad you're feeling, it's nothing a nice cup of tea won’t sort out.

Also, if you'd rather not admit your troubles to your friends (though they'll undoubtedly be happy to help) then you should speak to university counsellors or student reps who will be able to point you in the direction of some good advice.

It might seem hard at first but remember the ridiculously long holidays where you’ll no doubt be yearning after wild nights out and the freedom of spending whole days in pyjamas. We'll be writing 'How to cope with being back home for Christmas' before you know it.

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Tags: Freshers week , Going to university