Truthfully, I know very few mothers who cling to their sons. But you're right, some (but very few) do. When that's the case, I look to the mother's relationship with hr husband. Often, there is not much of a relationship there. Perhaps the mom is looking for a substitute? What matters though is how the son handles it. Does he stand up to his mom and draw clear boundaries? Does he say he doesn't like it but act otherwise? Is the son willing to do what it takes to make sure mom knows her place? As his mother, "her place" is a very special one forever, but a son -- or any child -- only needs "mommy" making decisions and calling the shots for only so long.
My son (an only child) is in his early 30's and he was only 3 when I became a single mom. Since his dad had some problems, they didn't always see each other or see eye to eye on many things, then his dad died when my son was 17. So my son didn't have a consistent male role model in his life. But I knew my job was to give him some solid roots as well as the wings to fly. We have a great relationship, and I know he values my advice and opinions which I give IF he asks. He's on his own, with a great job, and has recently been dating a young accomplished woman that I think (and hope) could be the one. If she is, my son will probably move out of state and potentially across the country. I'll be very sad if that happens, but I won't let him know that. Since it was my job to help him develop his wings, how can I resent his using them? That's not the way it's supposed to work, IMO.
Based on my own experience, I'm not sure a clingy mom or a dependent son happens because of a lack of a strong male role model. I think it happens more when parents don't understand that their role ultimately is to let go and, if necessary, kick the baby bird out of the nest. Whether you kick them out or they go on their own, you can rejoice in watching them fly and take comfort in knowing you did your job.
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