4 Critical Tips for College Freshman: Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed & Something Blue

Ready or not, Fall Semester 2024 is HERE, and emotions are ping-ponging from anticipatory excitement to near-panic fear of the unknown. After a decade as both a mom of college students and as an experienced on-campus physician, I’m here to share four critical tips for a successful year!

SOMETHING OLD: HOMESICKNESS

2023 data shows 56% of today’s first-year college students will experience significant homesickness, especially during their first semester. Social media often makes homesickness worse, offering nonstop images of your old friends clearly having more fun. (Meanwhile, they’re viewing your stories thinking the same.)

Try this RULE of THREE to … Read more

The ULTIMATE College Student Health Handbook

I’m excited to announce that the 3rd edition of my passion project, The ULTIMATE College Student Health Handbook: Your Guide for Everything from Hangovers to Homesickness, is now available. If you’re new here, welcome! My name is Jill Grimes, MD, better known as “Dr. Jill” or “the College Doc”. I’m a board-certified family physician who enjoyed private practice for roughly 20 years, then switched my focus to teen and young adult health. I treated college students in an on-campus university urgent care setting for about 7 years, until the pandemic hit, and I pivoted to public health initiatives. As … Read more

Weed: A College Doc’s Biased Opinion

Parents, April 20th is the perfect day to talk to your teens about weed. “420 Day” has become an international cannabis holiday, celebrated with parties that include publicly smoking or consuming edibles where usage is legal, and demonstrating to advocate for further legalization where it is not.

Why “420”? Specifics are debated, but most agree the name originated in the early 1970’s, from a small group of high school students in San Rafael, CA, who used to meet at 4:20 pm after school to smoke weed together. Today, their code word “420” is synonymous with cannabis, which is why your … Read more

A finals week care package for students

@tiktok.collegedoc #Inverted Parents, help your high school or college students feel their best & optimize their study efficiency with this College Doc recommended finals week care package! #collegehealthtips #parentsoftiktok #parentingteens #parentingcollegekids #carepackage ♬ original sound – Jill Grimes, MD

#Inverted Parents, help your high school or college students feel their best & optimize their study efficiency with this College Doc recommended finals week care package!

… Read more

Your Sunglasses are NOT Enough!

Do you have the sunglasses you NEED to view the solar eclipse? Do NOT wait till the last minute to get the real thing: ISO 12312-2

Listen to the Dr. Glaucomflecken podcast for all the solar eclipse scoop!

@tiktok.collegedoc Do you have the sun glasses you NEED to view the solar eclipse? Do NOT wait till the last minute to get the real thing: ISO 12312-2 Listen to @Dr. Glaucomflecken podcast for all the solar eclipse scoop! #solareclipse #eclipsesolar #eclipseglasses #collegehealthtips ♬ original sound – Jill Grimes, MD

… Read more

Avoid These 5 Common Mistakes that Can RUIN Your College Spring Break!

After 20+ years of helping teens and college students pick up the pieces of their Spring Break disappointments, these are the most common mistakes I’ve seen that can easily be avoided:

  1. Getting caught with a FAKE ID: Plenty of club bouncers might look the other way or simply confiscate “fakes”, but every state has unique penalties, and local enforcement can vary significantly- especially during Spring Break. Did you know that “knowingly possessing, using, selling, manufacturing or even delivering” a fake ID in Florida is a 3rd DEGREE FELONY? AND, Florida is getting very serious about cracking down on spring break
… Read more