Arguably, one of the hardest things about going away for college is coming home. No matter the distance, the return to your old room and your old routine isn’t as seamless as it seems. Reasons may vary, but for the grand majority of students all over the world, dropping everything and packing it up is a difficult process that involves a lot of packing and a lot of temporary goodbyes. But the process follows through once the planes have landed and the car is parked in your old garage between broken lawnmowers and old pool toys.

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Step One: Relief

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of stepping through the door into your home, where everything screams familiarity. Nothing like dropping your bags in your old room with your old stuff. Everything feels cozy and comfortable. The momentary bliss could last anywhere between a week and month, but for the time being it’s enough. Because you’re home and you’re free, and that’s enough.

Step Two: Denial

It starts with a just a small, insignificant, barely-even-there touch of boredom that your refuse to acknowledge. For the first time in 10 months there’s no class, no studying, no cramming. Being away from your friends, whether they stayed at school or they’re at their respective homes, means that there’s no one to make plans with. You spend a lot of time running errands with your parents, partially because you love them and partially because you know that it’s the only way you get out of the house. But you’re fine. Everything’s fine. That’s how it’s supposed to be, there’s nothing to worry about. Right?

Step Three: Resistance

You do your best to fight it, and for the most part you fight valiantly. You may or may not have just finished binge watching your third TV show on Netflix. The rational part of your brain knows that being home is not a bad thing, and that in the long run everything’s working out for the best. But the other part of your brain, usually the part watching your friends crazy Snapchat stories, is struggling to cope. But you won’t give in, you will pull through.

Step Four: Rock Bottom

You haven’t left your bed in a few days, and you’ve started to run out of things to do from home. All your shows have ended, your parents are at work, your old high school friends are mysteriously MIA, and there’s something a little sad about getting lunch alone. Again. Things are at an all-time low. You’ve avoided social media in hopes of escaping everyone’s summer beach trips and nightly outings but it’s makes little to no difference. You’re devastatingly unaccustomed to life at home, and it begins to take its toll.

Step Five: Acceptance

You know what they say about rock bottom: there’s nowhere else to go but up. After the initial shock of being home, you begin to realize you may have been over exaggerating a touch. You’ve fallen back into your old routine, and despite the difficulties, it’s working. You’re going out and taking advantage of the time with your family, your friends have magically reappeared and started making plans, and you’ve managed to be proactive with the time you do spend alone. It may be hard to leave behind your new life for three months, but you’ll be grateful that you made the decision to spend it at home. Because one day, it’s a luxury you may not get.