Retirement is NOT an Ending

I am sure everyone has seen the Peter Mansfield commercial. The entire commercial is full of Peters asking Peter about retirement. He had some great lines, and they go like this. "Retirement is not an ending, it can be whatever you choose to make it". "Retirement can mean a new purpose, passion and possibilities". 

The majority of people seem excited to retire; especially if they are years away from retirement age. For those that are retirement age, one third of people that retire develop symptoms of depression. It is said that the main cause is loss of routine, and sense of purpose. Some people find it difficult to fill the gap in the time they would go to work. 

It is certainly easy to get overwhelmed with all the information to help roll smoothly into retirement. Retirement articles usually focus on money, I skip over them. I did find an article that had a number in it, and of course it caught my attention. It gave suggestions for transitioning into retirement. I thought through my own retirement journey, and I put their suggestions into the order of my personal experience.  

1. Retire in stages 

I actually did this, I retired in three stages. In reflection, I stumbled around making retirement decisions on a whim and they were working out beautifully. I was 63 at the time that I retired from nursing. I am not sure why I decided it was time, I just quit, pulled my nursing registration, and that was that. I am still shocked that I retired from nursing just before Covid arrived. It is almost like my subconscious knew I could never work in Covid conditions and said, "get out girl". Let's face it, 63 is random, but it was one of the wisest moves I have ever made.  

Stage #1 was completed when I retired from nursing. I was still working in my private healing business when Covid hit. Due to regulations, I had to close my business for three months. It was the first time in my adult life that I wasn't working and didn't have an income. When I started back up again, I implemented Stage #2. I only worked every other week. I felt it was a good transition to full retirement. I looked forward to having a full week off, to do what, not sure, but I had 7 days to figure it out. 

I continued with my healing business for two years. I promised myself I wouldn't work a day past 65 and I kept that promise. A week before I turned 65, I did Stage #3, and I closed my business. I had mixed feelings about that, but I knew I had to keep my word to myself. 

2. Be ready to fill the gap 

Filling the gap came on Jan 11, 2020, when Mom lost her home to fire. Neither of us wanted this to be the way I filled the gap, but I was so grateful to have the time to be with her.  

3. Develop a new routine 

My new routine initially was to use my weekend routine. That was to get up, sit, and drink coffee in my chair as long as I wanted, and eventually get dressed. Then I thought maybe there should be more to my days. I decided to get up, dress up and show up. Then I decided to stop making rules and guidelines for myself, and just do what I wanted each day. One of my favorite things still is to watch TV, write and drink coffee in my bed. 

4. Make plans

I believe we all need something to look forward to, it brings us happiness. It doesn't matter how little the plan is, it is important to our well-being. I need very little preparation to be ready for a plan, I can prioritize very quickly in my head and be ready to go. 

My plans for retirement are not as grand as they would have been years ago. I am so much more content not to travel or take part in big events. With that said, I am not afraid to hop on a plane, drive a long distance or go to something that I want to attend. I don't sit and think, "what do I want to do now". I let the opportunities come to me. 

5. Talk about it 

I remember when a close friend of mine retired. She would talk about what it was like, and she seemed to have some unanswered questions. I, of course, at that time was working, and only had my eye on the day I would retire. Well, interesting enough when the day came and the time that followed, I talked about it. I talked about how disillusioned I was. Suddenly, I expected to know what I wanted to do with my retired life. I had worked my entire adult life, and I was supposed to just shift. I was talking about the same concerns my friend had spoken about. Clearly, having a retirement blog means I can write about it, which continues to bring me clarity. 

6. Keep your mind active

I feel that we are super aware of how our mind works once we retire. When the words don't come to us or we forget a name, we assume we are getting dementia. What else could it be? The first couple of things that I took up were knitting and jig saw puzzles. Both are not big challenges for the mind, but they do make you think. Just listening to the news or reading the paper will keep your mind sharp. We have so many opportunities to challenge our minds, we just need to use them.

7. Take up a project

I have learned the concept of "having a project" from one of my good friends. She always spoke of having a project and I always spoke of having to do something. I decided it sounded more adventurous and grander when you used the word "project". I have taken on many projects since I retired. As I write this, I am just getting my condo renos done and that has been one of my biggest projects by far. 

8. Learn something new

One of my biggest learning curves has come from writing this blog. I enjoy swooping around on Google and learning new things about the topic I have chosen. Even the setting up of the blog site and managing it took a great deal of time to master, but now it is easy for me. Every day I write and every day I learn something new about what I am writing about. 

9. Exercise

Just days away from the second anniversary of my retirement, I joined a M.O.V.E. class for 55 and up. As you know I have always wanted to do CrossFit and so I call my exercise program, just that "CrossFit". It is empowering for me. I can't believe what I am doing in class, but I really can't believe what some of the longtime members are doing. Their strength and endurance is unbelievable and inspiring. 

10. Volunteer

I was raised in a world of Volunteering. I think as a kid I looked at being in the Legion and Auxiliary as a job for my parents. They showed up and did what needed to be done. When I was raising kids in a small community, the rink, hall, church and school events were all run by volunteers. It was a way of life. In retirement, I feel volunteering is rewarding. Not just something that needs to be done to keep the doors open on a facility. Choosing a position to volunteer has to serve a purpose for you. It also took nearly two years to find my perfect place, but it has happened.  

11. Accept your new life

It does happen when you realize this is your new retired life. Everyone has a different life and what they enjoy about their lives. I realize I could never be responsible for caring for people and making decisions for their health care ever again. That ship has sailed, and I am glad it has. I still get asked for my medical wisdom from time to time, and that is good enough for me. 

I am closing by admitting that retirement living is great. I just needed to calm down and enjoy it. If you aren't there yet, give yourself time. If you are there, I know you can relate to this post.