Recently\nmy first born left home and this change stirred a wondering inside me. What\nwill it be like to have no kids at home? A mixture of excitement and sadness\narose in me and I began to think about the Empty Nest syndrome and its impact\non parents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Empty nest syndrome is not a clinical condition or\ndiagnosis. It is a transitional period in life\nthat highlights loneliness and loss. Parents may experience feelings of grief, sadness and\na loss of purpose when their last child leaves home. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Although you might actively encourage your children\nto become independent, the experience of letting go can be painful. You might\nfind it difficult to suddenly have no children at home who need your care. You\nmight miss being a part of your children’s daily lives \u2014 as well as the\nconstant companionship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You might also worry intensely about your\nchildren’s safety and whether they’ll be able to take care of themselves on\ntheir own. You might struggle with the transition if your last child leaves the\nnest a little earlier or later than you expected. If you have only one child or\nstrongly identify with your role as parent, you might have a particularly\ndifficult time adjusting to an empty nest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the past, research suggested that parents\ndealing with empty nest syndrome experienced a profound sense of loss that\nmight make them vulnerable to depression, alcoholism, identity crisis and\nmarital conflicts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, recent studies suggest that an empty nest\nmight reduce work and family conflicts, and can provide parents with many other\nbenefits. When the last child leaves home, parents have a new opportunity to\nreconnect with each other, improve the quality of their marriage (or if single\nbegin a relationship) and rekindle interests for which they previously might\nnot have had time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
If\nyou’re experiencing feelings of loss due to empty nest syndrome, there are some\nsteps you can take to ease the transition. For example: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, if your last child is about to leave home and\nyou’re worried about empty nest syndrome, formulate a plan. Look for new opportunities\nin your personal and professional life. Keep busy or tak on new challenges at\nwork or at home, form a stronger connection with your partner, friends and\nyourself. Doing this can help ease the sense of loss that your child’s\ndeparture might cause. Transitions and change are a part of life, be kind and\npatient with yourself, with time you will adjust and begin to find your way!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Recently my first born left home and this change stirred a wondering inside me. What will it be like to have no kids at home? A mixture of excitement and sadness arose in me and I began to think about the Empty Nest syndrome and its impact on parents. Firstly, what is Empty nest syndrome?…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":132,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[14],"yoast_head":"\n