[bluedolphin92]

This is the kind of stuff my mom/dad have started to say to me in the past few weeks. It absolutely kills me to hear them say it, because I really do love them. It's just that I've been feeling pretty depressed lately and I guess they've noticed that I seem withdrawn, though I haven't told them about the depression.

One thing that makes this especially hard for me is the fact that I'm thinking I'd like to transfer to another college next spring (too late to do it for fall semester.) I have a variety of reasons I'd like to do it, but honestly one of them is because I do want to get a bit further away from home. I'd like to get out of state so that I can be a bit more independent, and immerse myself in a new environment. I really think that doing that could be helpful for my depression. But how can I tell them that I want to move out of state when they already think I hate them? Telling them that I want to get away from them would only make them think that even more. How can I let them know that I still love them, but just need a change?

[Redsoft]

You could tell them one of the reasons you've been withdrawn is because you were worried about telling them you want to transfer, that you were worried about them feeling hurt that you were interested in this out-of-state school.

Give an academic reason foremost as to why you want to go to the new college "They have an amazing [Science] program", or name something about the city that you want to experience. Some parents can take "I want to be more independent" to mean "I want less of you around," unfortunately, so I might stay clearer of that reason, even though it's completely acceptable to feel. Adventure is good for the soul.