How To Handle your Kids Leaving your Home for College

Goodbyes are always the hardest.

Raising a child is a challenge that never leaves your side from birth. After finally giving life to your children, you are stuck with the responsibilities that come with it. Through this, you are given the burden to raise them in the way you want, which is commendable. Some parents take this for granted, wishing their kids to grow up quickly so that their kids can handle themselves.

However, if your kid indeed reached that age of puberty, where would that leave you? As much as you are tired of the responsibilities, through culture, you will probably learn to adjust them into your daily routine. After suddenly stopping one part of the routine, it may feel confusing and lost, and that goes the same way with your kids suddenly leaving for college.

Even though going to college is a fantastic accomplishment and you've always known the day would come, most parents are unsure of how to handle it. You have had to care for your kid for 18 long, hectic, but wonderful years, and now they are leaving the nest and beginning the next chapter on their own. It's perfectly natural for you to experience deep grief and even lament your child's departure from your life, even while you're proud of and happy for your child and the adventures they're about to go on.

The question is, how do we handle our kids leaving for college? Here are some tips below.

Plan non-parent activities for yourself

It's crucial that you psychologically be ready for your child to leave for college and don't avoid thinking about it. It's crucial to figure out how to provide your energy and discover new methods to keep yourself occupied, even if our children are frequently our focus and source of great energy in our lives. Due to your responsibilities and hectic schedule, you may conclude that working more hours would help you cope with the loss of your kid when they go to college. As much as you think of how your child would feel after leaving home, you should also consider what you would feel after letting your kids go. Take this as an opportunity to pursue the things you could not, due to the restrictions from the responsibilities of being a parent.

Show never-ending support and school spirit

You should not feel as though your child's decision to attend college signals the beginning of a new chapter in their life that has nothing to do with you. Even though you would not be living with them full-time, you will still be an important part of their lives. They may even need you more than ever right now, as you will discover. Discuss your feelings about your child going off to college with them before the big move. Make yourself be included with these decisions they partake in life, but that does not mean that you have the right to dictate it. Thus, you must validate their decisions and consider the pros and cons of these choices. Despite all, it is crucial to let your children know that you are proud of them and the effort they have put in to get where they are, but that you also miss them and want to be as supportive and active as possible throughout their time at college.

Communication is the key

Because long-distance calls were so costly, generations left for college with little more than a brief weekly phone call. The world has evolved. Parents may wish to specifically address the appropriate means of communication for each family member. Some families communicate digitally using text groups or Group Me, setting up a virtual table where family issues may be discussed. Others organize routine video calls. Gorchoff discovered that college freshmen were quite satisfied with such routine interactions after conducting an informal study of the population. The majority of students wanted to maintain a good relationship with their parents, but "they just want to prevent frequent and unforeseen disruptions," according to the study. With all these statistics gathered, it is safe to say that parents should also learn how to adapt to these innovations and step up, making the conversation more efficient for their children.

The sadness will pass

This phrase does not only go for parents, but it goes the same way for their kids. The sadness felt will eventually deteriorate, and both may be in the process of adjusting to a new phase in life, but if you set a mindset of, “the sadness will pass”, this will make the leaving process easier to bear for you and your kid. As a parent, it is essential to become an emotional foundation for your children, thus, you must consider the repercussions of all the things you say. To handle the moving out phase easier, you must always remind your kid that this sadness is just a part of life and adulting, and all of these feelings are just temporary. Despite your first negative, nervous, and fearful feelings about your children leaving for college, you'll eventually learn to see the numerous advantages of the major adjustment. You should be happy with your child for working so hard to get a spot in college and remind yourself of how well they did to earn it. By attending college, your child will be better prepared for the future and have more options presented to them. You should be proud of your child since they are obtaining the knowledge and training necessary to succeed in the future by attending college.

Always Schedule Visits

Making preparations with your child in advance is a terrific approach to dealing with their leaving for college. You don't have to stop spending time with them just because they no longer reside in your house. You could be astonished at the variety of options there are for visits, even though this would not be as doable if they're going to an institution that's quite a ways away. Always let them feel your presence.