10 things you can do when your Children fly the nest

You may have heard of the condition “Empty Nest Syndrome” which can affect parents (or guardians) whose children are at the age where they have grown up and are ready to “leave the nest”.

This might be when they first move into their own home or when taking the step into higher education, leaving for college or university.

It can be a difficult time, a challenging combination of pride seeing your children becoming independent – paving their own way, and worry that you will miss the closeness you once had, the quietness of the house or what you will do with the time you spent raising them. Often parents find they have more time to spare and wonder what they can do to best avoid feelings of anxiety or stress often reported as symptoms of “Empty Nest Syndrome”.

To support anyone coping with Empty Nest Syndrome, we’ve pulled together 10 different ways to help cope:

Foster a child or young person who is currently in need of a home.
Volunteer in your local community, reaching out to charitable organisations and groups working to make an impact in your area.
Start a blog to share your experiences with others who might be going through something similar.
Take care of projects around the home such as starting a kitchen garden to grow your own herbs and vegetables.
Perfect your passion – it could be anything from improving your painting skills or starting a book club.
Explore the local countryside and finding new favourite walks with friends, which can be a great way to spend more time outdoors whilst getting to know your local surroundings.
Use this time to focus on your physical health, start an exercise class or joining a local fitness group.
Try something entirely new by joining a community group to learn a brand new skill whilst also meeting like-minded people.
Enlist the help of a friend or colleague to improve your technology skills.
Set your sights further afield and plan trips to places you’ve always thought about visiting.
By fostering one of the 9,000 young people currently in the care of local authorities across England and providing a home for children at a crucial time you can make a positive contribution not only to your own well being, but also to society.

Over the years, having raised a family – seeing them grow up under your guidance and care you are already experienced in nurturing a child through their different life stages and ages. You are already aware of the patience, time and energy needed to care for a child and so you may choose to use this chance to share your experience by fostering a child, who can no longer live at home and is looking for the skills and surroundings you could offer them. In turn, finding the opportunity immensely rewarding for both yourself and the life of a young person.

Fostering is a way to make a huge difference both to society and to the life of a child – to support them in a safe, warm, family environment encouraging them to flourish and succeed in their future. Why not take the first step today and speak to Capstone Foster Care to learn more on how you can help to build brighter futures?