The Almost Empty Nest—Letting Go, Redefined: Parenting Teens and Finding Yourself Again—with Small Jar Coach

Have you ever felt that knot in your stomach when your big kid seems off—and you immediately start wondering what you did wrong? This reaction doesn’t come from insecurity—it comes from love. Especially in this stage of motherhood, when your role feels less clear and so much feels uncertain, it’s easy to make your child’s experience mean something about you.

Today, I’m continuing the Mindset Traps of Parenting Teens and the Empty Nest series with a focus on Personalization. Once you understand why your brain keeps pulling you into taking responsibility for things that aren’t actually yours to carry—and how much that’s costing you—you’ll start to see a different way to stay connected to your child without carrying so much guilt, anxiety, or emotional weight.

This episode will change how you think about taking things personally so that you can let go of emotional responsibility and find real peace in this stage of motherhood.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

Have you ever felt a sense of relief when your big kid leaves the house, and then felt terrible for feeling that way? In this episode, I explore the thought, “I'm relieved when my kid isn’t home.” If you’ve ever wondered what that thought says about you as a mom, you’re not alone. And you're not a bad mom.

Whether you feel like you’re walking on eggshells, struggling with anxiety about your child’s choices, or feeling the hurt of your kid pulling away, this episode will help you feel seen. I'll discuss the difference between loving your child and taking emotional responsibility for who they are, how they feel, and how their future turns out. I explain why moms so easily slip into overthinking, self-blame, and chronic anxiety, and how this keeps us feeling stuck and exhausted. The relief you crave isn’t found in your teen’s absence, but in learning how to set boundaries and focus on who you choose to be in the relationship.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

What if the anxiety and exhaustion you feel as a mom right now isn’t a sign that you’re failing—but a sign that you’re carrying more than you were ever meant to? If you’re parenting teens or young adults and stuck in that constant mental loop of when to step in, when to back off, and whether you’re somehow getting this stage wrong, this episode is for you.

In this conversation, I unpack why control feels so necessary for us moms and why it’s not a character flaw or a parenting mistake. I explain how control often becomes a coping strategy for fear, responsibility, and uncertainty, and why it stops working as our kids grow and need to figure life out on their own.

You’ll hear a compassionate reframe of letting go—one that doesn’t mean giving up, checking out, or caring less. I walk through tangible, real-life examples of what letting go looks like in everyday moments, from overthinking conversations to checking for reassurance, and how this shift creates more peace for you and more independence for your child.

If you’re a mom who wants to feel calmer, more confident, and more grounded while parenting teens or young adults, this episode will help you see control, letting go, and yourself in a whole new way.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

Have you ever wondered if your teen or adult kid even cares how you feel?

In this episode, I’m sharing a deeply personal story from my own journey of parenting teens. I take you with me on a long, lonely overnight drive home from Chicago with my teenage son. At the time, it looked exactly like what so many moms fear: that all the love, effort, and sacrifice didn't matter. But years later, that same moment resurfaced in a way I never could have predicted.

In this episode, I explore why this stage of parenting teens can feel so heartbreaking, why it’s so easy for moms to personalize our kids’ withdrawal, and how our brains naturally fill in the gaps with painful stories about our worth and our role. I unpack what’s really happening beneath the surface — emotionally and developmentally — and why a lack of appreciation in the moment doesn’t mean your love isn’t landing.

If you’re navigating the empty nest transition, struggling with letting go, or feeling dismissed and invisible in your relationship with your teen or young adult, this conversation will help you feel less alone. You’ll walk away with a new lens for understanding your child’s behavior and an invitation to stay open to connection without chasing it or losing yourself in the process.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

If you’ve ever found yourself holding back advice with your teen or big kid—wondering whether to say something or let it go—this episode is for you. Because parenting teens and young adults puts us in a really uncomfortable place. We still have wisdom to share… but far less influence over their choices. And suddenly, advice that used to land now feels like it creates distance and power struggles.
In this episode, I’m going to explore the difference between advice, expectations, and boundaries. You’ll learn how to decide when to speak up, when to step back, and how to show up in a way that protects both your peace and your relationship with your child.

Join me to stop second-guessing yourself and start feeling more grounded and confident in how you show up with your teen or big kid. 

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

I don’t feel close to my kid anymore.

If you’ve ever had that thought while parenting teens or navigating the empty nest, this episode is for you. I’m talking honestly about what it feels like when the relationship with your big kid changes—when they share less, pull away, or seem like they don’t need you in the same way they used to. This isn’t a sign you’re failing. It’s a painful and very human part of letting go.

In this episode, I explore why this kind of distance hurts so deeply, how disappointment turns into fear, and why we often try to fix the relationship by asking our kids to show up differently. What I’ve learned—through my own experience and my work with moms—is that demanding connection isn’t what restores it. Learning how to sit with our own discomfort, trust the bond we’ve built, and love without pressure is what changes everything. This episode is an invitation to rethink what letting go really means in the parenting teens and empty nest years—and how staying steady inside yourself is often the most powerful way to stay connected.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.             

Have you ever noticed how much mental energy you spend wondering if you’re doing this parenting thing "right"? Maybe you replay conversations in your head, second-guess a boundary you set, or feel that pressure to do just a little more…just in case. That pressure doesn’t come from being overly critical or demanding — it comes from caring deeply. And from the belief that if you can just find the right way to handle things, you’ll finally be able to relax.

Today, I’m continuing the Mindset Traps of Parenting Teens and the Empty Nest series with a focus on perfectionism. In this episode, we’re going to talk about how the search for the “right” way fuels anxiety, erodes self-trust, and keeps you carrying more than you need to. And we’ll explore what it actually looks like to decide what’s enough — without waiting for your kid or your life to be different first.

This episode will change how you think about effort, responsibility, and what it really means to let go in this stage of motherhood.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

Have you ever caught yourself thinking, I’m the only one who cares — and felt both justified and completely exhausted by it? I hear this from so many moms who are parenting teens or navigating the early empty nest years. You care so much about your kids’ safety, happiness, and future, yet it often feels like you’re the only one paying attention, thinking ahead, or worrying about the consequences. In this episode, I explore how this belief often turns into they don’t care, so I have to — and how that mindset keeps us stuck in anxiety, frustration, and over-responsibility. 

If you’re struggling with parenting teens, feeling on edge as your role shifts, or wondering how to practice letting go without giving up, this episode will help you see what’s really driving your reactions — and how to begin showing up in a way that supports your kids and yourself.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

Change is uncomfortable. And if you’re parenting a teen or standing on the edge of the empty nest, you may be feeling that discomfort more than ever.

In this episode, I’m talking about why change feels so hard—even when it’s the change we want—why so many of us try to avoid that discomfort by staying busy, fixing, or just avoiding our pain, and what it actually looks like to sit with that discomfort in a way that brings peace instead of overwhelm.

If this season of motherhood feels harder than you expected—if you’re feeling anxious, uncertain, or unsure how to let go—join me as I talk about what’s really happening underneath that discomfort, and how to face change in a new way.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected]. 

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.

“I don’t know what I want anymore.”

If you’re parenting teens, launching a child into adulthood, or standing on the edge of the empty nest, this thought might feel painfully familiar. It begins to show up in the space that opens as your kids need you less—and event more when the structure of motherhood shifts and you’re left wondering what’s next for you.

In this episode, I’m talking about why so many moms feel disoriented during this stage of motherhood—and why it’s not because you’ve lost yourself or failed to plan ahead. I share a personal story from when my boys were still young, and how the same feeling I experienced then shows up again and again as we move through parenting teens, letting go, and eventually facing the empty nest.

What if the problem isn’t that you don’t know what you want… but that you’ve spent years being needed?

In this episode, I unpack the hidden mindset that keeps so many moms stuck waiting—waiting for the kids to be settled, for the anxiety to ease, for life to feel calm enough to finally focus on themselves. I talk about how this shows up differently when your kids are still at home versus when they’re grown, and why even after they leave, your mind can stay on duty long after your hands are no longer needed.

If you’ve ever told yourself you should be enjoying this phase more.... If you’ve felt restless, resentful, or sad, even though your life looks fine from the outside…If the idea of “finding your purpose” feels overwhelming or out of reach…This episode will help you see yourself with more compassion and clarity.

💡 Interested in learning more about how to create peace, confidence and connection as you raise and launch your teen? Join me for my next free masterclass: https://www.thesmalljar.com/class.

💪 Curious about coaching with Small Jar?  Check out our Mom 2.0 coaching program: www.thesmalljar.com/Mom-2-0.

❓ Have questions or want to share your feedback? I'd love to hear from you! You can email me at [email protected].

This empowering podcast offers life coaching for moms and parenting support for midlife mothers raising teens as they approach the empty nest, teaching them how to let go of control, stop overthinking, and shift their mindset, while also helping them set boundaries, improve communication, reduce anxiety, release mom guilt, and find purpose in the evolving journey of parenting teens and motherhood.