Recently divorced dad of one here. I am also in the military. I came back from a month and a half in the field to find that my wife had taken herself, our son, and all of our belongings and moved back home out of state while I was away for military training. I was handed divorce papers the next day. That was four months ago. We were together for five years in total and my son was only seven months when she took her.

I have since moved across the country by myself and have only seen my son once over FaceTime a week ago. I hate the way our marriage ended, but I don’t miss being with her. We both verbally acknowledged that we were only together for our son before I left. But grieving being a father and knowing that my only son is growing up and I don’t get to be there kills me everyday. He means everything to me, and without him in my life, every this just feels so empty.

I’m just curious if anyone has any advice for me to move forward. I don’t want to be apathetic and wallow in my own self pity. I’m getting back into the gym consistently, focusing on my career, and trying to rebuild my life from scratch at 32. I’m considering getting into therapy, but part of me feels like it’d be a waste of time. But to be honest, I feel so lost in my grief and my loss missing my son, and I don’t know how to move past the pain I’m stuck in. Any advice would be most appreciated.