I bet it fades with time. Nice job planning.The subject line says it all. I retired recently, and on paper I should have no stress. We have plenty of money with a great, simple financial plan. House paid off. Great vacations planned. Available health care and good health - no big current health issues. Estate plan locked and done. 529s that will more than cover kids and (eventual) grandkids. Lots of hobbies that I am turning back to, a large garden in which I love spending time. My wife and I are now taking weekly day trips plus having lunch together every Wednesday. I am on a couple of charitable boards. We love where we live -- the San Francisco Bay Area (although I could do without the taxes, traffic and cost of living.....). Retired after a great career in tech and law, on my own schedule (at age 57), with my company begging me to stay. I retired because I could, and because I want to stop missing so many family events....and because it was getting more difficult every day to convince myself to keep running the corporate rat race.
Yet, since I retired, I am experiencing significant and unexpected anxiety, almost to the panic level at times, when thoughts of "holy moly, what have I done" come to mind -- this decision is irreversible, and one of the most weighty decisions of my life. I have been completely blindsided by the anxiety -- the precise and accurate source of which I really have not figured out, yet. I know I need to look forward, not backwards, I need to retire "to" something new, not "away" from something, but that is proving tough to do. Yesterday, I put a simple post it note on my monitor that reads "What if my retirement works better than I imagined." I have increased my exercise, and I am thinking about maybe teaching a course or two at law school (I have some offers), but none of this seems to be providing immediate relief.
What is your top tip with dealing with this anxiety? After decades of focusing on my career and "fighting" my way up in the world, to suddenly just turn it off.....very, very, very difficult.
Thanks in advance for your suggestions!
My top tip is retire gradually. Cut back cut back cut back cut back and then eventually retirement isn't very different from working. But that's harder with some careers than others.
Statistics: Posted by White Coat Investor — Sat Feb 08, 2025 11:24 pm — Replies 62 — Views 8688