Uni in the UK is full of drugs. At some point they will be offered to you and I'm going to teach you how not to die.
It's so easy to say "just don't take them" but the chances are some of you will.
1. Weed
Weed is the safest, its harm is in regular use. One minute you're fine, the next you realise your sleeping pattern is fucked and you haven't been to lectures in 2 weeks.
2. MDMA + pills
The people who are most likely to die at uni from taking pills are ill advised and often showing off.
NEVER take a full pill on your first time. If you want to try pills, have a QUARTER. If after 45minutes you are feeling nothing, try another quarter.
DRINK WATER. If you're on a night out and you've had MDMA, don't keep buying and drinking alcoholic drinks. Getting dehydrated on MDMA is super easy and very dangerous. Get yourself some water.
Only buy your pills from someone who has TRIED THEM and can tell you where they got them.
Make sure you have gum to hand to make sure that if you gurn you don't hurt your mouth or damage your teeth.
3. Comedowns
The day after a high, your body will feel like it has been hit by a train, you might feel very low, you might not want to be left alone. STAY WITH YOUR FRIENDS. Make sure everyone has checked in with you the day after, look our for each other. Snuggle, watch TV and get a take out. But don't stay on your own, it might make you feel really low.
4. Ketamine
Ketamine is just gross, but if you're going to take it, don't drink lots too. It has a similar effect to alcohol. Your body can be so numb that you don't feel pain, and you can easily hurt yourself and not realise until later on or even the next day.
5. Cocaine
Cocaine is HELLA expensive and very addictive. I honestly wouldn't touch it full stop.
I know of three students at my uni this year who got addicted to coke and dropped out because they were mentally and financially ruined.
6. Psychedelics
Messing with psychedelics can be dangerous, you may have neurological issues that you haven't yet been diagnosed with which can be made worse by psychedelic drugs.
Only take psychedelics around good, trusted friends.
That's all the advice I can think of, i considered talking about alcohol but that gets covered at home and in schools.
How to survive freshers when you don't care about partying
Let's be fair, you're terrified. Everyone you know is pumped to start uni simply because they can't wait to get trashed and make new friends that they won't remember the name of in the morning. They're looking to blow their student loan in a week and then joke about it for the rest of the semester whilst they live off packet noodles twice a day. Surprisingly, that doesn't sound like your cup of tea - and I don't blame you, it wasn't mine either.
((Don't get me wrong here guys, I have nothing against people who want to drink constantly and go out clubbing and experience freshers that way!! Everyone has their own preferences and I totally appreciate that!))
For whatever reason you don't fancy the whole 'freshers' experience, I've got a few bits of advice to help you cope. The worst thing to do when going into freshers is to think that everyone is going to be massively into partying and will start drinking at 9am. Obviously, there will be some people like that, but you exist right? And other people like you exist too. The hardest thing is finding those people, and this is because the expectation of freshers week/month drives people like me and you into hiding through fear of being peer-pressured into something we don't want to do. Fortunately, if your uni is anything like mine, the student union will be aware that not everyone likes drinking and so will have some fun activities in the day time that you can go along to. For me, these were anything from a tour around the city, to a Harry Potter marathon, to a zombie run in the park. Admittedly, I didn't go to many of these, but the ones I did go to were amazing fun and it was good to get out of my room in halls.
Another, maybe more obvious way to meet people is in your halls! If you're living in halls for your first year, which many people do, you'll be surrounded by other people in your exact same situation - they don't know anyone either. You may be extremely lucky in who you have in your flat, or you might not. Either way, being surrounded by a load of other first years is more often a blessing than a curse. Although do be prepared for some 3am fire alarms (I had 5 nights in a row of someone maliciously setting off the alarm in my block - I was ready to commit murder ngl).
As much as freshers is about meeting potential friends, it's also about getting prepared to start lectures and actually see what you've signed yourself up for. The likelihood is that you'll have a few induction talks, library tours, that kind of thing. Now you will be tempted not to go to these, but I met my best friend (who I'm living with next year) on a tour of the learning commons so don't count it out! You'll get to meet people on your course, and there'll be something to start a conversation with, whether it's the crap weather or the fact that you had to get out of bed too early to get to this stupid tour. Plus you get the added benefit of learning more about your uni and course!
Hopefully these little bits of advice have helped some of you out, and maybe made you feel less scared about the impending freshers season. Don't forget there are tens of thousands of people in the same boat as you, you'll meet your people eventually!! Good luck with your first year at uni flowers~~
Hi, I'm really sorry to bother you but I just don't know what else to do, I've just started at uni (I'm studying history too!) and I like my course but I hate living away from home, it's so so horrible and I'm so homesick all the time. I can't leave my room at night and it's giving me horrible panic attacks and I just don't know what to do. And I know you talked about anxiety before now and that you did history at uni too so I was just wondering if you have any tips? Sorry to bother you again!xx
Hello! First of all, you’re not a bother at all, and I’m so sorry you’re feeling so rubbish. It’s awful, I know, but you’re so brave to 1) actually move to uni (which is a huge step!) and 2) reach out for help :) My first advice would be to immediately go to your uni’s counselling service - they will have professional therapists who have seen all this a thousand times before, I promise, and they will be able to offer you personalised support. I know it can be daunting, but it is so important to seek medical help when you need it, particularly if you’re developing anxiety, and they won’t judge you at all. Lots of students are homesick, particularly at first, so they might even offer you the chance to join a support group with other people in the same position, if that works for you.
The other advice I have is maybe less conventional, but I used to get really really homesick when I lived out and all the “don’t go home for the first term and phone your mum sometimes!” advice just didn’t cut it for me, so...yeah. First of all, I’m guessing you’re living in the UK, and lbr, this is not a big country. Go home. Not permanently, but maybe at the weekends? I know everyone says that this is a bad idea because then you don’t get used to living alone, but with the greatest respect, that is total bollocks. Some people just aren’t ready to move out at age 18. It’s a really scary thing, and there’s absolutely no shame in feeling like that. The UK is small enough that you can go home on a Friday and come back Sunday evening/Monday morning (unless you are at St Andrews and your parents live in Lands End, then it might be harder...) I used to go home every weekend, and so do more people than you’d think.
People say that you’re missing out, but I would argue that you will miss out on less overall if you go out with people on weeknights, knowing that you’ve only got to do this for a few nights, then you can go home to your family on the weekends, than if you spend every night crying in your room because you hate it so much. I know it might cost a bit of money, but think of it as a trade off: maybe you can’t buy all the little luxuries you want, but you are happier overall because of the money you’re spending on travelling. Plus, as the term goes on if you do start to feel happier, you can start staying on weekends, you don’t have to come home. But know that there is absolutely nothing wrong with being a “weekday student” if that’s what makes you feel happy, and that actually, lots of people do something similar :)
It’s great that you’re enjoying your course though, and I hope that continues! Maybe ask a few people on your course to get lunch with you after lectures to help with the loneliness? Or join a society--they tend to have socials on weeknights, so you can go to those (if you’re feeling up to it!) and you’ll automatically have something in common with the other people there. You can do this and go home on the weekends, so you’re still getting the “uni experience” of going out, meeting new people, without feeling so truly awful all the time. I want to reiterate about going to see a counselor, because it is so important, but in the meantime my inbox is always open if you need to vent. Or talk about history! Hope this helps :)
So you may now have arrived at university and although you have conquered the first battle of packing and actually getting there, there seems to be more battles ahead. How do you settle into university?
What do you do with your time now that you only have six contact hours a week when your roommate has twenty five hours? The ultimate worry of making sure you find friends is always at the back of your mind, let alone the worry about how you’re actually going to get on with your course. Flyer after flyer is being pushed in your face trying to get you to join societies and you are experiencing an information overload. People are telling you that freshers is just easy and fun but you’re finding it pretty intense, and rightly so. Here are some top tips to help you get through those first few weeks of term:
Try not to worry. Remember that everyone is in the same boat so they will want to make friends quickly. At university, you have the opportunity to meet lots of new people, in your hall, your course or through any clubs you join so it is highly likely that you will meet your kind of people very quickly.
Finding your way around. Universities can be huge spaces and they can be very hard to find your way around, especially if your university is spread around a town or city rather than on a campus. Universities will provide maps so make sure you get your hands on one of those and look out for signs and student reps to point you in the right direction. There should be plenty of people around to help you in your first few weeks so don’t be afraid to ask.
Join clubs/societies. Universities have an endless list of societies so go to a freshers’ fair and find out about them. Even if the ‘flyer after flyer in your face’ is driving you crazy, try and be patient and talk to students and you will find something or maybe many things that will appeal to you. Then sign up to as many as you like and narrow it down later. You can’t do it all but being a part of some clubs, whether they are something you are familiar with or something that is new to you is great experience and helps you balance your studies as well as make new friends.
Contact hours. So it might seem strange that you only have between six to nine contact hours a week (or maybe less), whereas others have about twenty five. But everything should balance out. If you have less contact hours then you will have more reading and assignments to complete whereas those with more contact hours will have less. Either way no subject should feel undermined by the amount of contact hours they have. The classic arts vs science rivalry will probably occur but it is important to remember that this is just ‘student banter’. You chose your subject for a reason and that is all that matters; don’t let anyone put you down about it.
Organising your time. If you have less contact hours then it can sometimes be hard to organise your time as all of a sudden your day seems to disappear having only had one lecture and one seminar. So… note down your timetable and try to do bits of reading/preparation in between commitments either at the library or a study room so you don’t have to spend your whole evening doing this.
Lectures and seminars. Find out what your department’s policy is on these. Of course it is best to attend everything – get your money’s worth from your degree. But you especially don’t want to be caught out by missing something that is compulsory as this will be recorded and could lead to consequences. If you have a genuine reason for missing academic commitments then contact your department tutor beforehand so you can be excused.
Note taking from lectures and seminars. Try not to write everything down as then you won’t really take in what you’re listening to but instead try to make notes that are in short form which you can understand. If you are provided with a hand-out beforehand then take this with you so you can underline important points and write extra detail when needed.
Going out. Freshers’ week has loads of opportunities to go out and you will be spoilt for choice on what to do. Have fun and enjoy it but don’t worry if you fancy a night off. You might still have commitments in the day and so try not to completely exhaust yourself or miss your lectures/seminars. Introductions are important to attend as you will be given information which will help you for the rest of term. Of course, you should enjoy your nights out and have fun, even after freshers’ week has finished, but just remember to manage your time effectively.
Remember you’re on a budget now. Be sensible with your money but don’t panic if you spend a lot of money in the first few weeks. There will probably be a lot of activities put on to begin with which cost, as well as paying for membership to clubs. So the first couple of weeks tend to be more expensive, just remember to budget from then on. If you’re a bright spark, in need of some extra money, why not try tutoring? We know this great socially responsible website called Tutorfair.
Don’t worry if Freshers’ week isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be. There is a lot of build up about freshers’ week but although it can be good fun, it can also be very tiring and you might experience some normal teething problems when starting uni. For some, you might be living away from home for the first time as well as starting a new course so don’t worry if you don’t find freshers’ week as amazing as people say. University is a fantastic experience and you will agree but perhaps not straight away.
Ask for help if you need it. Although you are no longer at school, it is still absolutely fine to ask for help whether this is on academic or pastoral matters. It is fine to contact your tutors if you are unsure of something or equally if you think something personal is affecting your work. Most tutors have office hours when they can see students so use them or email them. There will also be pastoral services available run by staff as well as other students so use them! That is what they are there for and nobody will judge.
So starting university may be a bit of a whirlwind but you will have fun. Just remember… ‘Don’t let your degree get in the way of your education’.
