Celebrity Moms Reveal How They Cope With An Empty Nest

Celebrity Moms Reveal How They Cope With An Empty Nest
Susan Sarandon, left, and her daughter Eva Amurri arrive at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Susan Sarandon, left, and her daughter Eva Amurri arrive at the 62nd Primetime Emmy Awards Sunday, Aug. 29, 2010, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

There's nothing quite as lonely as when your kids have grown up and flown away, leaving you with a house full of empty bedrooms and bittersweet memories. But take heart -- you're not alone.

Even celebrities experience "empty nest syndrome." Talk show maven Kathie Lee Gifford has been coping with an empty nest since her children went off to college. She suggests closing their bedroom doors to resist the temptation of going in, having get-togethers with other empty nesters, and finding something to do to fill up your time so you're too tired to think about missing your kids.

So until you figure out what to do with the spare rooms or what your next career move will be, click through our slideshow to see how these successful celebrities have thrived post-empty nest and what they've learned about coping:

1
Katie Couric, 56
AP
Talk show host Katie Couric has been a single mother for the past 15 years after husband, Jay Monahan, passed away from cancer in 1998. Couric has two daughters, Ellie, who graduated from college earlier this year, and Carrie, a senior in high school.
2
Andie MacDowell, 55
Getty Images
Actress and model, Andie MacDowell (center) is mother to two daughters, Rainey Qualley (left) and Sarah Margaret Qualley (right). She also has a son, Justin. When MacDowell's youngest daughter went away to college, MacDowell decided it was time to focus on her career again. "I asked myself, 'What am I doing here? There are no kids. I am ready to go now,'" MacDowell told TV blog Zap2It.
3
Alfre Woodard, 60
Getty Images
Actress Alfre Woodard struggled with her empty nest last year when her son, Duncan (left), and daughter Mavis left home. Woodard decided, however, it was time to throw herself back into work and starred in the 2012 film, "Steel Magnolias."
4
Michelle Pfeiffer, 55
AP
Actress Michelle Pfeiffer has two college-aged children--daughter, Claudia Rose, and son, John. Being an empty nester is "scary," Pfeiffer told Ladies Home Journal in 2012, but she's finding ways to stay busy. Her new hobby is painting portraits.

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