Now he is moving out at 23, im lost.

[NesB]

Hi I'm new here, I am 38 and my son is 23. I had him young I know. We are now at the stage of him moving out completely, I should be used to this after 3 years of uni but I really am struggling. Most people who's children have done uni and moved out are a bit older than me so I have no one close to offer advise or tips on coping sadly. I feel so lost, I'm happy for him and know he is doing it because its time for him to grow but I have no clue who I am anymore :/ my name has been mum for so long, how do i figure out who I am without him at home? sorry for the dramatics :/

I always think you have to hold on to the positives, you are so young, you have the chance to find and build a new life. However because you were so young you haven't had the chance to get to know who you are, you were a child and then a parent. What you are feeling is normal sending you

thank you for taking the time to reply. knowing its normal somehow helps :) nes

This is very normal. My 23 year old was moving back and forth from university too but has now moved out - and I don't think he will ever move back fully again. It feels a bit sad even though it is very normal. I enjoy relating to him as an adult - we have dinner together once every couple of weeks, we zoom in his sisters who are in university, dh and I are consciously trying to plan things we didn't do when we had kids at home. I'm a lot older than you though.

You are so young, you could have some amazing times ahead of you to figure yourself out, do something different, enjoy the lack of responsibility. He hasn't gone away for every - you will have a different relationship where you meet for dinner, text each other stuff, you get to enjoy seeing him launch himself in life. But it is an end to one bit of your life and it is hard so mind yourself.