You've spent years protecting your kids, guiding them and helping them through life's challenges. So what happens when they become adults and suddenly don't want your advice anymore? It can be difficult knowing when to step in and when to stand back, especially when all you're trying to do is help. If you've ever felt rejected when your adult kid doesn't take your advice, this episode is for you.

In today's episode of Empty Nest, Love & Me, we're talking about:

• Why helping our adult kids can sometimes feel like interfering, even when everything we do comes from a place of love.
• The difference between listening and fixing, and why our adult kids don't always want solutions when they share their problems.
• How our role as parents changes, from managing their lives to supporting them as they make their own decisions.
• Why being needed can become part of our identity, and how stepping back can bring up unexpected feelings.
• How to stay close without taking control, allowing our adult kids to develop confidence in their own judgement while knowing we're still there.

The next time your adult kid comes to you with a problem, before jumping in with advice, ask them:

"Do you want my advice, or do you just need me to listen?"

And if they simply want you to listen, give them that space.

Sometimes, the greatest support we can offer isn't telling our adult kids what to do. It's showing them we trust them to figure things out.

Remember, stepping back doesn't mean stepping out of their lives. You're still their mum or dad. You're simply learning to love them in a different way.

If this episode made you think about how you communicate with your adult kids, why not share it with another empty nest parent who might need to hear it?

🎧 Follow Empty Nest, Love & Me on Spotify or Apple Podcasts so you don't miss our next conversation.

⭐ Enjoying the podcast? Leaving a rating or review helps other empty nest parents discover these conversations and find support too.

📖 Read my book, The Mother I Was, available on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1837097909

With love,

Demi-Lee Taylor

Empty Nest & Love Languages Coach

In today's episode of Empty Nest, Love & Me, we're talking about:

• What happens when your adult child doesn't reply, and why something as simple as an unanswered message can bring up feelings of hurt, worry or rejection.
• The difference between what happened and what you're making it mean, and how the stories we tell ourselves can affect how we feel about our relationships.
• Why their response time doesn't define your worth as a mum, and how to recognise that your adult child's life and communication habits may have changed.
• How to stay close without chasing your adult kids, by understanding your feelings, respecting their independence and communicating your needs without accusations or guilt.
• My See It. Name It. Reset It. Discuss It. approach, and how to separate the facts from your assumptions, understand what's really hurting and decide whether a conversation is needed.

A little something to think about this week:

When your adult child doesn't reply, what do you find yourself believing about your place in their life?

You don't have to pretend it doesn't hurt, and you don't have to assume everything is fine. You can acknowledge your feelings without automatically believing the story your mind is telling you.

Your relationship with your adult kids may look different now, but that doesn't automatically mean the love has changed. You're learning how to love them as the adults they're becoming while learning how to look after yourself, too.

If this episode has helped you feel a little more understood, follow Empty Nest, Love & Me so you don't miss our next conversation.

📖 Read my book, The Mother I Was, available on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1837097909

With love,

Demi-Lee Taylor

Empty Nest & Love Languages Coach

In today's episode of Empty Nest, Love & Me, we're talking about:

• Who you are beyond being Mum, and why you might feel lost when your children no longer need you in the same way.
• How you can lose touch with yourself, after years of putting your children's needs and everyone else's happiness first.
• Why making space for yourself isn't selfish, and how you can continue to love and support your adult kids while rediscovering your own needs and happiness.
• Why you don't need to rush into reinventing yourself, or fill every spare moment with hobbies just because your life looks different now.
• How to start reconnecting with the woman you've become, by asking yourself what you've missed, what makes you feel like yourself and what you want this next chapter to look like.

A little something to think about this week:

If you weren't making every decision around what everybody else needed from you, what is one thing you would want to make space for in your own life?

You don't have to go back to the woman you were before you had children. You've grown, changed and lived a life full of experiences. This is about getting to know the woman you are today and recognising that your needs, dreams and happiness matter, too.

You're still their mum. But you are also a woman with a life of your own still waiting to be lived.

If this episode has helped you feel a little more understood, follow Empty Nest, Love & Me so you don't miss our next conversation.

📖 Read my book, The Mother I Was, available on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1837097909

With love,

Demi-Lee Taylor

Empty Nest & Love Languages Coach