Empty nest

[3boyshere]

Please be gentle with me as I suffer from anxiety. My DS is moving to London with his girlfriend and renting a flat there for 12 months whilst on secondment with work. We live in a sleepy village with almost no crime and I am convinced he is going to go there and get attacked on his way from work. The flat seems to be nice from the pictures but the area not so nice. The area seems run down. How do I stop myself from checking up on him constantly. A the moment I have a tracking application on his phone because I stress so much when he is out and this gives me some relief (he reluctantly agreed to it) I actually worry how I will cope mentally. He is my last child at home. My other two DS live within a five mile radius of me have children and are settled with lovely wives. The DS who is leaving is my youngest. I have actually had counselling for this before but with little success. Please be kind and thank you for reading xx

I lived in London for six years and can honestly say I always felt safe even fairly late at night - there are just so many people around and everyone seems to co-exist pretty peacefully.
I never saw any trouble or felt threatened at all. I loved it and had a great time. I’m sure your son will too.

Can you say where he'll be and it might be easier to reassure you? I'm a former Londoner.

Most of what you hear on the news is drug/gang related so try and put your mind at rest.

While crime obviously does happen in London, @highlandcoo makes a good point. Lots of people about can makes things safer, in comparison to a deserted street in a smaller town.

Thank you lovely ladies for your replies. He is in the Elephant and Castle area x

I’ve lived in London all my life and always feel less safe in quiet, sleepy areas where no one is around to hear you scream. 99.9% of people in London are not criminals. I used to go through Brixton very late at night and there were so many people around it might as well have been rush hour.

Yep, I used to get the last train home from charring cross as a single woman and it was as busy as lunch time and fine.

He'll be with his gf and they'll explore London together

Hi OP, I've lived in London all my life too and spent many years in rundown areas. As previous posters have said, there's almost always plenty of people around/shops open/cars/buses etc. and I've never felt unsafe travelling home on the tube late at night. I'm sure your DS will enjoy all London has to offer. Would you think about continuing with your counselling to try to alleviate your anxiety? I feel your pain as I suffer myself, I find CBT methods, yoga and meditation helpful.

Thank you ladies for your helpful replies it does make me put things slightly more into perspective. I feel like he has been so sheltered living here but you have all made me feel a bit better xx 😘