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The Empty Nest Isn’t Empty: It’s Full of Emotions

Whether your kids are still in the house or you’ve just waved goodbye to the last one, one truth remains: parenting is brutiful. I love how Glennon Doyle combines brutal and beautiful to give us the word brutiful as it so aptly describes parenting, right? One moment you’re being needed nonstop, and the next… no one calls. And while that independence is exactly what we hope for, it can sting in ways we never expected.

In this episode of The Love Your Life Show, I’m diving into what it really means to prepare for the empty nest—and how to care for yourself emotionally before, during, and after the transition.

If Your Kids are Still at Home? Start With These 3 Shifts

If you’re in the thick of parenting, now is the perfect time to prepare your heart and home for what’s next. Here’s what will serve both you and your kids the most:

Learn to Self-Regulate

Forget the Pinterest lunches or the perfectly planned schedules. The skill I wish every parent learned? Emotional regulation. When we know how to feel our feelings, instead of reacting from them, everything gets better. Not only does it feel better for us to show up as grounded, steady leaders in our homes. It also sets a great model for our kids on emotional intelligence. Trust me, your ability to stay calm when your kids are acting like kids is your superpower. And it’s contagious.

Know Your 3 Jobs as a Parent

Your main roles aren’t what culture shouts at you (get them on the “right soccer team” or make sure they know how to make a bed). Rather, our 3 most important jobs are to:

• Keep our kids safe
• Set clear boundaries for them to push against
• Teach them emotional regulation

That’s it. That’s the gold. These jobs raise resilient, less anxious humans—and they’re exactly what I guide parents through in my Parenting Class. It’s simple, effective, and life-changing.

 

Shift Your Focus from Them to You

Spend less time thinking about them and their life and more time thinking about you and your life. In essence, it’s time for us to “Get a Life”

If your daily thoughts were a pie chart, how much of it is focused on your life? Not your child’s lunch, your teen’s test, or your partner’s mood—but you. If it’s a tiny sliver, it’s time to expand it. Having a life outside of your children isn’t selfish—it’s healthy. It supports their independence and your sense of purpose. And I’m here to help you get started with the Life List Experience.

 

If Your Kids Have Launched:

If your kids have left your home and, like me, they’re all off creating their own lives, listen to the last part of the podcast episode because I have specific tips that will help you. I’ve launched three and stand at the other side with a full fridge and connected relationships with each of my sons. While they don’t need me anymore, they want me and that’s a beautiful thing. Click on the episode to listen in. 

 

Empty Nest. It’s Not the End. It’s the Next Chapter

The empty nest is not a void; it’s an opening. An invitation. A return to you. Yes, it’s emotional. Yes, it’s messy. And yes, it can be magical. With the right support, you can rediscover who you are outside of your role as a parent and model what thriving in midlife and beyond looks like.

Inside the Love Your Life School, I guide women just like you through this very transition—with tools, coaching, and a compassionate community.

If no one’s told you yet today, I think you’re amazing. Not everyone reads posts like this yet here you are at the end! That tells me that you’re extra-ordinary. A true warrior. I hope you take the next step to listen to the episode and then join me as a one-on-one client or in the Love Your LIfe School. We were never meant to do this alone.

Plus, with professional support, your second half can be your best part yet! Let’s go!

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