Karla Olson, founder of the The Empty Nester Club, has a question for the moms in the world.“Are you ready to be an empty-nester?”If not, her new book, “The Almost Empty Nest,” is for you. And if you are already an empty nester, the book is still for you.“I want moms to go into empty nesting with a little momentum and not start when their last child walks out the door,” she said. “It’s not about hitting a best-seller list. I want moms to find this, and I want them to share it with their friends.”“The Almost Empty Nester,” which will be officially released on Oct. 15, is now up for presale on Amazon.com and is trending at No. 11 in New Books for Midlife.“That’s really really exciting because I want to help women rediscover who they are before their kids leave the nest,” said Olson, motivational speaker, former co-host of the Park City Pulse TV show and founding member of Lionsheart Park City. “Early preparation is key, and this book helps them to transition.”The book is divided into three parts — past, present and future, according to the author.“First section is about the past of moms who have been mothering for 20 years,” she said. “We look at the past and create a highlight reel for their favorite mom moments and assess where we are at in the present.”Through the present, readers will learn about empty nesting, Olson said.“They will find out what some of the conceptions and misconceptions we need to clear away,” she said. “Once we take the time to sink into that, that’s when your soul whisperer pops up, like a beach ball, and our rhythm changes.”Those changes occur when children move out, Oslon said.“When that comes, I think that’s the time when we can define our next chapter, which is the future,” she said.One of the big challenges of moving toward the feature for mothers is letting go, according to Olson.“Mothering is such a verb, an action, that we do every waking hour,” she said. “We’re always wondering what our kids are going to eat, did they get their homework done or what are they going to do after school. And even though we sometimes leave those choices up to them, we’re still thinking about those things. So mothers, when they decide to start letting go, need another vessel to put that energy into.”The book will help them do that through a process called the 10 Cs:Connection Conversation Challenging Compassion Contribution Conviction Curiosity Creativity Community Celebration“With these concepts, I take them through an exercise and see what bubbles up to the top,” Olson said. “I think as people we have known what we really wanted to do our whole lives, but as mothers we kind of put those things aside, due to what we are demanded of these days. There is so much power in the pause, and the book is a pause for moms.”Olson conjured up the idea to write “The Almost Empty Nester” a few years ago.“Back in 2019, my first daughter MacKenzie graduated, and while I was getting ready for my oldest one to go to college, I thought I didn’t have to worry about empty nesting, yet,” she said. “Fast-forward three years later, and my second daughter is graduating. I still didn’t know what I wanted to do, but I knew the next three years would go by really fast, so I thought I really needed something to fill my empty-nesting years because I poured so much time into my family. I needed to find another channel to put my love and energy into.”Park City resident Karla Olson, founder of The Empty Nester Club, shows off a proof of her new book, “The Almost Empty Nester,” earlier this week. The book, which will officially be released Oct. 15, is available for pre-order. “The Almost Empty Nester” is a guide for moms whose children are preparing to fly the coop. Credit: Photo by Fonzi MontalvoThe book was originally going to be a book that would help all empty-nester genders, Olson said.“About six months into it, I saw that there really is no book out there just for moms,” she said. “I’m married to an amazing man. I love Mark, and he’s just a wonderful and amazing father. And one day, he said to me, ‘Karlie, I’m going to miss our kids, but my journey is so different from yours.’ And that’s when I realized I couldn’t write about his journey. I could only write about mine.”Olson dived into research that took two-and-a-half years that included late nights and talking with friends who were empty-nesters before her.“Those who prepared for it were thriving, and those who didn’t were sort of blindsided when their last kid moved out,” she said.Some of the numbers astounded Olson.The United States Census reported 22.5 million empty nesters in the United States alone, and only 7% prepare for it, she said.“I also found that 63% report feeling lost and alone, but that percentage jumps up to 75% if there are health and financial issues,” Olson said. “That’s 15 million people who are struggling with empty nesting.”In addition, the Surgeon General declared loneliness an epidemic in the country, she said.“So, I hope this book helps people schedule some meet-ups, and form book clubs,” she said. “We will always be mothers, but I hope this book helps get them back in touch with their passions and individuality and what they want from midlife. So my goal is to help 1 million empty nesters find their next chapters.”Olson also hopes the book will help mothers get over feeling guilty about letting go.“We have to get rid of the mommy martyrdom that comes with the antiquated thought that we have to give our all to be a good mother,” she said. “I believe the more I shine and pursue my passions is the best role model I can be for my kids.”For information about Karla Olson, “The Almost Empty Nester” and the Empty Nester Club, visit theemptynesterclub.com.The post ‘The Almost Empty Nester’ helps moms prepare for the time when kids fly the coop appeared first on Park Record.