College Survival Guide
When young adults leave home for college and what may be their first real test of taking care of themselves, it can give both student and parents pause. But paving their independent path without parents watching over their eating and sleeping habits, health care and general well-being can actually be a good experience for college-bound children.
The key is to start early helping your child develop coping skills for life, advises Frank Biro, MD, a pediatrician in the Division of Adolescent Medicine at Cincinnati Children's. "If you've made all the decisions for your children, they will not magically become good decision makers themselves," he notes. "Graduating from high school does not mean automatically that your child graduates into good decision-making habits. That's a process that parents and teens should work on throughout the high school years."
However, just by being aware and prepared for the realities and pressures of campus life, parents and students alike can make the transition from high school to adulthood less challenging.
Crowded living quarters, late nights, new food and drink choices, and increasing social pressures and responsibilities are all a part of the college scene. And that scene raises clear issues around health care, wellness, independence and responsibility.
Before the departure date, Dr. Biro advises parents to make sure their children are up-to-date on recommended immunizations (meningococcal and acellular pertussis or whooping cough vaccines). He recommends parents talk openly with their children about the parents' views on binge drinking, safe sex, sexually transmitted diseases, abstinence and date rape.
