Leeds Week One - The COVID Edition

Hello!

So, I've officially completed my first week in Leeds after moving up last Thursday! There's so much to talk about, I don't really know where to begin...

(I've tried to keep things short and sweet, but please message me if you want to know a bit more about the first week of the DHDT course at Leeds.)

The difference in how I feel today compared to the first few days is crazy! I started the draft for this post a few days ago, and I've had to rewrite it because even in a couple of days I feel completely different. Initially, I was very nervous about going out by myself in a new city. I hadn't gotten to know anyone very well. I was feeling a bit negative about the online lectures and so on. However, over the course of the week, the change has been dramatic.

The weirdest adjustment has been transitioning from going to work 6 days a week, waking up with an alarm, having zero time to do anything else, to having so much time on my hands, and pretty much nothing pressing to do. I've been trying to accept that I don't need to feel guilty about not being productive all of the time. Being hungover on a Wednesday is a very peculiar feeling for me but I'm getting used to it 😂 Every day currently feels like a Sunday! Student life really is weird...

My course mates have had a group chat going since March (I know - we're a bit keen), and it's enabled us to get to know each other pretty well before we all moved to Leeds. For me, it has made everything feel less daunting. This week we met up for lunch at Trinity Kitchen, a few of us went to play crazy golf and grab some drinks (in spoons of course #studentlife). We've formed a lovely little group and I couldn't be more grateful for them. I've been to check out a few of their halls and that's when my "new status as a student" really started to sink in. A couple of us have met up in study rooms to complete the online induction lectures together, which is something I'd strongly recommend to other first years. It helps to keep you engaged and it's really good to stop you from watching it from bed!

COVID has had a pretty big impact on my course and freshers week in general. Everything is online. Even the student union societies have virtual fresher stalls, virtual socials, and so on. Bars and restaurants are majoritively booking only, and of course, there's a six person limit. It's made things a little bit harder, but it hasn't been as bad as I was anticipating. It's also caused some contention in my halls as not everyone wants to follow the COVID/social distancing guidelines and they're been a bit of bickering in the block group chat 🤦🏻‍♀️ Thankfully my housemates are all on the same page so it hasn't been an issue in my flat.

Despite my initial concerns, I definitely haven't over packed (thanks to some handy under bed storage I didn't know I was getting). I'm planning to make a list of the things I packed (and what I shouldn't have bothered with) so future first years can use it as a checklist. The drive up and actual move-in was very smooth and my room is pretty much what I expected. I think I've picked a good location and, if we ever do go into uni, it's super close by.

One thing I must comment on is the awesome dental society at Leeds! Their induction lecture yesterday was so helpful and they've paired each of us up with second years, aka our 'dental parents'. We're grouped into little 'dental families' of about 10 with other first and second-year students. The idea is they support you through your first year and help you out with any questions you have. I actually virtually knew my dental Mumma, @april_smiles93, through Instagram before we got paired up and she's fab! The dental family scheme is such a good idea, and with the changes this year, it helps combat the feeling that you're on your own.

I'm looking forward to starting lectures next week and properly getting into the syllabus. I will probably regret saying that in a few weeks, but at the moment I feel like I want to be getting down to work!

Remember, #healthiswealth !

Lots of love,