Do You Have Pandemic Empty-Nest Syndrome?
How parents can cope when kids leave home a second time
by Sarah Elizabeth Adler, AARP, May 24, 2021 |
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Homemade bread and backyard chickens weren t the only trends to take off during the pandemic. Cohabitation between parents and young adult children skyrocketed, too, with the number of 18- to 29-year-olds living at home reaching levels not seen since the Great Depression, according to 2020 findings from the Pew Research Center.
But as colleges and workplaces across the country begin to reopen, many young adults who returned home in the last year are preparing to leave the nest once more. It s a change that can find parents grappling with feelings of loss and sadness but experts say the transition to an empty nest doesn t need to be fraught a second time around. Here are their strategies to ease the adjustment.