Reese Witherspoon, 49, ‘cried’ over her kids leaving for college because it felt like a crushing ‘loss’

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Reese Witherspoon ‘grieved’ her eldest children when they left home for college.

Oh my gosh, it absolutely *destroyed* me to hear that Reese was a mess when Ava and Deacon left for college! Seriously, can you imagine? Forty-nine years old and still such a momma’s girl at heart! It just gets me that even with everything she’s accomplished, sending her babies – her and Ryan Phillippe’s kids, of course – off to school just completely broke her down. I felt so bad for her, seeing her all teary-eyed. It’s just…so relatable, even for someone as amazing as Reese!

Reese recently shared on the New York Times’ podcast, The Interview, that she felt a sense of loss when her children went to college, admitting she cried in their empty bedrooms.

‘One year, one of them didn’t come home for Christmas, and I sat in their bed and just cried.’

The Morning Show star said she felt a ‘loss’ because the kids were not around.

Reese, who is also a mother to her 12-year-old son, Tennessee, with her ex-husband Jim Toth, 55, shared that it’s heartbreaking when you dedicate yourself to someone and it doesn’t work out.

 

‘You take the food out of your mouth, the coat off your back. You don’t sleep.

Parents often lose sleep either because they’re busy caring for young children, or because they constantly worry about the dangers their older children might face – like car accidents or getting involved with drugs.

But the Legally Blonde star accepted the fact that her children have to grow up.

Reese explained that being a parent means carrying all the same worries your own parents had. But if you’ve done a good job raising them, eventually they’ll become independent and leave the nest.

‘It makes me teary right now. It’s just really hard. But you know you did the right things.’

Reese also mentioned on the podcast that Ava and Deacon have become very close friends with her now that they’ve moved out.

You know, it’s so sweet – Ava just checks in like any good friend would. And Deacon? We’re always talking! We hang out whenever I’m in New York, and he’s got the *best* recommendations for restaurants. Seriously, he knows all the cool spots! I’ve basically trained him to get reservations for me, because let’s be real, he’s way better at it than I am now!

‘But it’s awesome to have your kids become adults.’

This comes after she said she parents her youngest child differently from her elder children.

Okay, so everyone thinks Nicole Kidman is this effortlessly cool mom, and she is, honestly! But she’s told me – and I’ve read *everything* about her – that with Tennessee, she’s really trying to be more relaxed. She says having Ava and Deacon when they were little was…intense. They just kept her *going* constantly, and she learned from that experience that she needed to approach things a little differently with Tennessee. It’s so relatable, you know? She’s a mom who’s *grown* as a mom, and I just adore her for admitting it!

Reese recently shared on the New York Times’ podcast, The Interview, that she’s feeling completely drained and tired.

When I get frustrated, I often turn to my youngest child and tell them, “You need to talk to your siblings. They’ve really exhausted me! I’m so tired – they stayed up late, had too many treats, and just generally pushed my buttons. But think about how *they* will feel later when they’re tired or unwell.”

She added, ‘I’ve been parenting for 25 years.’

In the same podcast episode, called “How Reese Witherspoon Figured Out Who She Really Is,” Reese shared the advice she’s been giving her daughter, Ava, as Ava starts her own career in Hollywood.

Reese recently discussed her oldest child, who began acting earlier this year with a role on the TV show *Doctor Odyssey*. She mentioned that her daughter turned 25 last year.

I was twenty-five when my daughter was a year and a half old, and I had just finished filming ‘Legally Blonde’. I was also getting ready to start working on ‘Sweet Home Alabama’ at the time.

We simply live very different lives, and I admire her for staying true to herself. She doesn’t try to copy me or be someone she’s not, and that makes me proud.

Do you get what I mean? I’m not comparing anyone else to my own path, but Ava is just naturally awesome. She’s always been that way. Some people have a quiet coolness about them, and that was definitely her. She just had that understated, cool vibe.

One of the hardest parts of having a 26-year-old daughter is adjusting to letting her be independent. It’s about realizing she doesn’t need my help as much anymore, and accepting that’s perfectly normal. It also means dealing with the occasional pang of sadness when I feel a little left out.

It’s not that I’m disappointed; it’s more that people I know point out how much worse things could be. If she were constantly demanding attention, that would be difficult, but she’s not like that at all. I’m really proud of the independent person she’s become.

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2025-09-23 01:05