LVED

mmon consensus amongst

rs and students. Its important
work and socialise. Initially, I
sitant but getting involved in
my college life so much more
ty. So join an activity or interexcites you. You can either parstream of events or get
ganisation. Either way youll
w friends, learn new skills and
nected to your home for the
.

ONNECTION

ood idea in the first week to

person in each of your classes.
your network of friends and
t to be a crucial resource at
ou have to miss a class. I made
est friends by starting a random
with the person sitting next to
in class, says Rao.

UT FOR HELP

have health and counselling

re sick or feeling isolated or
speak to a counsellor. If such a
available, then Gupta suggests
up to friends whom you share

dont have to face these issues by yourself.

SAVE POCKET MONEY

If youve never had to budget, now is the time
to start. Find ways to stretch your pocket
money the best you can. I set myself a limit
for the week, and set aside an amount for
emergencies, says Rao. There will be days
when your phone has no charge and youre
stuck somewhere far from home. Having reserve cash means you can take a cab back
home without having a complete meltdown.

INVOLVE YOUR PARENTS

Rao says keeping parents in the loop about
her busy college life helps. When your parents know what youre doing, they are less
worried and hence easier on curfews. If
youre staying back on campus to do something constructive, then explain to them why
its important. While parents may worry
about all the hours youre spending away
from home, theyd also understand the reason behind it. So, give them credit for having
tolerated you even through your testing
school life and include them, as much as possible, in your college experience.
Check out tomorrows edition to
know what you need in your new college
wardrobe

re video games
arming our kids?

pent in front of the gaming console can lead to mental illness

new study is now warning

that this could change the
way that children use their
brains, leading to mental illnesses such as dementia and
ssion. The research, by the
sity of Montreal, found that susgaming could lead youngsters
lect parts of their brains, with
ating results. Scientists monihe brain activity and eye moveof gamers using state-of-the-art
caps and compared them with
of non-gamers. They found gamre more likely than non-gamers
an area of the brain referred to
reward system, rather than the
campus, which controls memoning and emotion.
d author Dr Gregory West
ns: This means people

who play a lot of action video games

could have reduced hippocampal
integrity, which is associated with
increased risk for neurological disorders such as Alzheimers disease.
Researchers at Ohio State
University found teenagers who spent
long periods playing violent games
such as Grand Theft Auto felt exempt
from ethical standards the rest of us
live by and showed less self-restraint.
Study author Brad Bushman said this
made gamers more aggressive and
made them eat more and cheat
more. Psychologist Dr Aric Sigman
says: There are concerns among
neuroscientists that this dopamine
being produced every single day for
many years, through, for example,
playing computer games, may change
the reward circuitry in a childs brain
and make them more dependent on
screen media.
Daily Mirror