10 July 2018

Empty Nesters Can Have Mixed Feelings About Their Situation

By Robert King


Raising responsible children is one of the main purposes in a parent's life. There are many ups and downs in doing this. At some point in time, the child will leave home and begin their own, productive life. This leads to the problems faced by empty nesters, one of which is the sadness and dread of facing this. Though it should be joyful, it is not always for some parents.

Parents should be able to be proud of their children at this tie, instead of facing an emptiness and feelings of grief. These children are beginning their own life, using the skills their parents have imparted to them. This should be a time for pride in the skills these children have. They can anticipate a successful life for the children in which they can be proud.

If you are feeling this deep sadness, it is best to admit that instead of pretending all is well. You can be happy for your child and still feel a sadness and loneliness. Admit it and understand that it is normal. If the sadness becomes too bad, however, you may need to seek professional help for a period of time until the feeling passes.

You are now free to pursue things that are enjoyable to you. Try to think of things you enjoyed prior to having children. Though it would have been difficult with children to do some of these things, you can not pursue them. Think about these things, or other things you might enjoy.

Finding a new hobby or something that will keep you occupied, something that you were not able to do when you had kids, maybe even something a little bit crazy but interesting. It may be you wanted to skydive, or zip line. Do it now that you have less obligations, and no small child to be responsible for.

You may have had to let your career go on hold to meet family obligations when you had children. You can now put your career first. You can travel for work, if that is something you would like to do. You can even take the chance now to start a new career, as there is less family responsibility if it doesn't work out, or if the income is lower.

Travel plans can now be made. You can travel across the country if you wish, or even travel outside the country if you want. RV living is very popular and is now possible for you as well. If you are retired, you have no time or career restraints. Take you identification with you and enjoy many senior discounts and special programs. You are free to roam, now. Take advantage of that freedom.

Downsizing is very possible now, and may well be something you want. You can either downsize to something cheaper, or something smaller and more luxurious. Move to the beach, or to the mountains, anything is possible. You don't have to worry about what is best for your children, or about the best schools or doctors. You can get by with a smaller house now that you don't have children. You can get a smaller one, maybe one that is much more luxurious.




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