Watch out for homesickness

SCHOOL holidays: season of Gaeltacht trips and summer camps — and homesickness.

Aside from the sadness and dread, homesickness can have very definite physical and cognitive symptoms, says Joanna Fortune, clinical psychotherapist and director of Solamh Parent-Child Relationship Clinic.

“Children may get tummy ache or say, ‘I’m going to get sick’. This can be very real, though caused by emotions. Cognitively, children can become preoccupied by thoughts of home and long to be there.”