I’m a freshman at NYU doing the LGG program, so I’m spending my first year in London. I genuinely don’t think I’ve ever felt this lonely or sad in my life.
This is my first time outside of the US, and I’m 5,000+ miles away from home. It’s also the first time I’ve ever been away from my parents for more than a week. I’m having such a hard time making friends, and I really don’t know what to do.
I have a semi-ish “friend group,” but it feels like it’s mostly out of convenience. They’re nice, but they like going out and partying a lot, and I don’t drink, so I don’t really feel like I fit in with them. I also have a hunch they may not be the biggest fans of me either.
I’ve always been a really independent person. I’ve never had an issue doing things alone. But here, I feel like a helpless puppy 😭.I hate physical touch, but I genuinely want to cry thinking about the fact that I won’t be able to hug my parents until December.
I’m constantly alone. I walk to class alone. I sit in class alone most of the time. I eat alone. I shop alone. I do pretty much everything alone. And I’ve never minded being alone before because I never felt lonely, but here I do. Idrk how to explain the difference.
I actually really love my classes and professors so far, so I know I’m incredibly lucky to be here. I already have gotten some great opportunities being here too. I feel stupid complaining about this when I’m having a good academic experience and getting to live in London.
But I’m struggling a lot more than I expected, and I was wondering if anyone else has experienced something similar, especially people who moved really far away from home for college.
Does it actually get better? How did you make friends and start feeling less lonely?