July 11, 2025
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Helping children stick it out when they are homesick at camp builds their confidence and resilience, a CHOP adolescent medicine specialist says.
Getting homesick letters, phone calls or texts from children at camp can be distressing to parents and caregivers. The temptation may be to jump into action and try to rescue the child or somehow fix the situation.
But that reaction – as understandable as it is – is not necessarily what is best for the child or the parent, said Dr. Richard Chung, an adolescent medicine specialist at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.
Parents should try to remind themselves "that just because a kid is having what might be deemed, quote, a negative or difficult emotion doesn't mean it's a bad experience, that many of the most important and ultimately positive experiences for our kids have some associated, quote, difficult emotions," Chung said.
In his work, Chung tries to help parents and children distinguish between "negative emotions that actually are appropriate and ultimately helpful and will be ultimately productive, from emotions that are truly problematic and need to be addressed.
"What we often say is that a difficult or negative emotion isn't inherently bad," Chung added. "It's really a question of, is it, No. 1, appropriate for the situation or the circumstance? And then No. 2, are you as the young person having that emotion able to cope effectively?"
Being homesick at camp is a fairly common childhood experience, and most kids are able to overcome it, Chung said.
Homesickness occurs when children are away from the familiar and experience a sense of loss about relationships and routines they count on in their day-to-day lives. It tends to manifest as psychological or physical distress, often attended by some kind of impaired ability to focus on or engage in activities and interactions, Chung said.
Children who are homesick may feel sad or anxious. They also might report physical symptoms, such as headaches or stomach issues.
"We often call those somatic symptoms, sort of getting to the sense that your body is feeling something, even if the root of those feelings is actually in your mind or in your heart," Chung said.
Leading up to leaving home, children may start feeling anxiety and have a hard time engaging in activities they would normally find pleasurable. At camp, a homesick child may have trouble making new friends and participating in activities being offered as a result of experiencing anxiety or fear, Chung said.
Parents who hear from a homesick child should "tap the brakes" and try not to overreact or convey their own anxiety. But do acknowledge and validate the child's emotions, Chung said.
If a child is texting or calling about being homesick, parents may want to say, "Hey, I know this is super hard," and offer some assurance that "feels sincere," Chung said.
Give children concrete reference points for challenges they overcame in the past, and praise them for taking a risk by trying camp. Chung suggested parents say something along the lines of: "I'm so proud of you that you've done this really brave thing by going to camp, and it's difficult, but I think you can do it."
Parents can reach out to camp directors to find out what protocols are in place for children experiencing homesickness. And encourage children to jump into whatever activities the camp offers, Chung said.
"One of the most important ways to address homesickness is to actually fill the void that they're experiencing with something new," with the experiences the camp has to offer, Chung said. "It may not be that you actually get rid of their homesickness, but they actually just end up forgetting it."
"I think that's kind of the key question," Chung said.
When the situation crosses from a healthy bout of homesickness to something that's insurmountable depends on the child and the family. If a child is already struggling with anxiety and has a lot of difficulty navigating change, "then that may suggest to you that this isn't just going to be a blip on the radar, but it's really going to be a persistent issue," Chung said.
Giving the situation the "tincture of time," is important, Chung said, adding that if the homesickness doesn't improve after a few days or a week, a parent may want to reconsider.
But the majority of kids end up doing fine at camp, and homesickness is just a "bump in the road," Chung said.
