Homesickness and How to Handle It

It is very important that your camper understands that missing home is not a bad thing. In fact, it means that they love home, which is wonderful! 

Here are some tips to help prepare your camper to manage their feelings of homesickness that they may experience in their time at camp. These are great conversations to have with your camper as you prepare for her departure. 

• Normalize missing home by letting your camper know that it is okay and perfectly normal for her to be sad, cry, or long for the comforts of home while she is at camp. 
• Talk with her about what she can do at camp when the feelings arise 
  • Talk with her big sister, an age group director, a counselor, or a lodge staff member.
  • Stay busy and distracted. Often when homesick, playing a game or doing something to get your mind off of missing home is the ultimate fix!
• Remind her that missing home is part of being away and that you know she can get through it! By providing the belief in her, you are encouraging her coping skills and independence.
• Keep conversations centered around the positive things she will experience at camp. Making statements such as “I will miss you so much” or “If you don’t like camp, you can come home” will only lead to broken promises and in your camper potentially being unsuccessful in the experience. 

Remember that missing home while at camp is a normal experience. Your camper will get through it and will come out on the other side with coping skills that she can use for the rest of her life! We will support her through this at camp but having the conversations to prepare her ahead of time will help her manage even more successfully.