This empty nesting phase is not easy. It’s a significant milestone in the lives of empty nesters. For a sit-home mom it is a lot tougher. The absence of children can take a big hit. When they leave to pursue careers anxiety and fear are unavoidable. For fathers too, coming home from work can trigger a missing spree when their offspring are away. A sense of loss settles. It takes a toll for some. Flexibility, freedom and self-discovery may find roots. Parents are on a tight schedule when kids are around. Marriage to an extent is not the same. Their munchkins take priority and intimacy takes a backseat. It rekindles the fading romance and togetherness without inhibitions simply flourishes. 

Travelling as a couple again strengthens the bond. Active parenting has an emotional load of thinking about their kids’ needs 24*7 but an exit lightens the milieu. Reinvesting in one’s health is an automated response. Picking up hobbies that were dormant then becomes the new norm. There is a lot of me time this way. A housewife considers getting employed again. Personal and professional growth is a natural thing as one can focus on themselves once more full-fledgedly. Loo and coffee breaks can be enjoyed with tranquility without any chaos. At the same time a noiseless environment may get on somebody’s nerves. The routine is shaken and disrupts daily entertainment created by young adults.

For hours there is nothing to do. Laziness steps in. Depression clouds parents. Presence takes away a lot of tension. Inner demons resurface when nothing concrete is happening. Voices of one’s progeny are harbingers of happiness and stability. Dark personalities break free and irritability is common. Having kids rein such personalities and when they are away for the greater good these conflicting thoughts generate hell. Expenses decrease. Daily chores are minimal and then sluggishness replaces promptness. Neglect makes inroads and health deteriorates. 

Life loses meaning when the entire time it revolves around their objects of affection. Identity crisis nags. To fill it with meaning, efforts are required consciously. Getting involved in something that distracts from worrying is a must. Illnesses resurface as distance wreaks havoc. Kids managing things on their own punches majorly. Loving, caring and involved parents undergo a lot of pain knowing that hostel life is a lot tougher than home care. This pill is hard to digest. Parents fall into a shell and communication is negligible. Sometimes children find their friends more appealing and holidays are spent in their company instead of parents. This change in behaviour is not taken well by many. 

Empty nesters are under a lot of grief but avoid sharing it. Social isolation is not a surprise. Crying is a daily thing in the initial days. Slowly they get used to staying like this and the gregarious ones see it as an opportunity to nurture their souls further. It’s a phenomenal transition which can make or break parents.