starting retirement w/surgery and 2-3mos recovery time

[retiringat50]

I'll be having bunionectomy and osteoectomy late May. Then retiring after 10yrs at the job. I wont be able to get right into my activities as I'll be on crutches. Thinking this will be relaxing time, reading, maybe scrapbooking, movies, etc.
Anyone else move into retirement very slowly and not able to plan activities right away?

 

[cantlogin]

No, not me. I was about two years into my retirement when I created a need for some surgery. The nice thing about being retired is that you are free to schedule your therapy and time in the gym when it's not crowded. It may also improve your skills at doing nothing. There seems to be an un-ending stream of nothing to be done and someone has to do it. I'm doing my part. Maybe you will help.

 

[SteveR]

Not me either as we are very busy right now. However, DW has had surgery a few times.

A note on the foot surgery. I have had a few foot surgeries so I think I can speak from personal experience. Recovery is slow with feet. Bone surgery especially. It is good you are not planning on doing much for a while. Plan on being restricted for several weeks. I had my surgery in the summer (Northern IL) so as to avoid the expense and pain associated with wearing snow boots; not to mention dealing with snowblowers and snow shovels.

Good luck on the surgery and the retirement. I retired in May 2007. It is hard to believe it has been almost 9 months. Where has the time gone?

 

[Shredder]

I'll be having bunionectomy and osteoectomy late May. Then retiring after 10yrs at the job. I wont be able to get right into my activities as I'll be on crutches. Thinking this will be relaxing time, reading, maybe scrapbooking, movies, etc.
Anyone else move into retirement very slowly and not able to plan activities right away?

Yes sir, I retired at age 49 after my third back op. (2 level fusion)I worked in the electric utility bussines. For the first few months I could not get around much, just short walks, then gradually things improved. I was supposed to go back to work after 5 or 6 months but with restrictions, my company said no, so retire I did. Due to a two tire wage system it is cheaper to have younger employees. At first there was some resentment at being told I have to retire, but since I have eased into it, and could not imagine going back. My pension is actually better till age 65, then I hope to be able to use my IRA to make up the difference. My only drawback so far has been my wife is still working, she is planning to work 5 more years and that holds back travel some. Now I'm 53, I fish more, long distance bike, go to the gym all winter, do yard work, make homemade wine (400 bottles in the cellar) and fart around on the net, camp in the spring/summer/fall, and generally just enjoy life. Just last week I went to the funeral of the guy who replaced me, he was 49 yr old, and a dear friend. It got me to thinking of how lucky I have been, even if I went today. Good luck to you as well.........Shredder

 

[Achiever51]

Retiringat50 --

I've been thru several foot surgeries -- also broke my foot, tearing up my ankle ligaments (BTW I'm a Pisces and we are noted for having foot problems.) SteveR is right; allow yourself lots of time to recover.

Incidentally, you might want to use the next few months to work on strengthening your upper body. Women (well, me for sure) often have a more difficult time using crutches due to our generally weaker upper body strength. I found it convenient to move my home office chair downstairs to our main level to scoot around in as I had a really hard time adjusting to using crutches.

Good luck to you!

 

[dumpster56]

400 bottles in the cellar.... Does that equal a 400 day supply?

 

[Shredder]

400 bottles in the cellar.... Does that equal a 400 day supply?

It means I make more than I drink. Don't think my liver could handle a bottle per day, or my stomach, when you have a cab/syrah/zin you gotta have bloody red meat as well. That's why I go to the gym as it is, too much of everything! Shredder

 

[two4theroad]

DH retired in October 06. As he would now be home to help me I decided to have surgery I had been putting off for many years. I left work in Dec 06 for carpal tunnel surgery on my left hand. The recovery was longer than anticipated so my doctor recommended we go ahead and do knee surgery (which I also needed). Long story short, due to the demands of my job the company will not certify me 100% able to return to my old job. So I am basically retired on disability until the long term disability company doctors reevaluate me in 2009. I am sure they will certify me capable of doing some type of gainful employment so then I will have to "officially" retire.
As to the original question, I think the forced relaxation was good for me. I doubt I would have adjusted to the wonderful world of retirement as well without that forced time to readjust. I was always just toooooo busy and felt guilty if I was not running at 110% all the time. I can now read or internet for hours without feeling guilty that some inane chore is sitting undone as I know I can do it later when I want to.
2fer

 

[friar1610]

A couple of years after I retired I turned up with prostate cancer. Because I was retired, I was able to do an incredible amount of reading and research about what treatment I wanted. My urologist at the time (I subsequently fired him) was really pushing for brachytherapy (radioactive seed implants.) His major point (other than the fact that it was his specialty) was that I would be "back at work" sooner. My only "work" at that time was a significant volunteer effort from which I could easily be excused. I opted for a treatment - surgery - that had a longer recovery time, but since I had the time to recover, that wasn't a big deal.

I've often wondered what I would have done if I had been working and was feeling pressure to get back to work.

I can't tell where I would be now if I had gone the brachytherapy route, but so far my decision to have the surgery seems to be the right one.

 

[dwk]

Shedder -- advice:

I'm not retired [53], but I've been off of work for about 12 weeks after a lumbar fusion L2-L3. None of this stuff is really worked related, just the normal wear and tear with some trauma mixed in. I've also had 2 cervical fusions, resulting in my neck being fused from C2-C7 -- I've got screws and hardware everywhere. This lower back fusion has been the toughest surgery/rehab that I've been through. I still have a disc at L5-S1, that may also need to be fused. And, I'm not sure that the current fusion is taking.

My concern is I'm 12 weeks out, still on pain meds, doing the PT and I still have episodes where I have spasms/pain of a sharp knife in my back. I'm on short term disability for a few more weeks and then I'll need to decide the next step. I do have long-term disability. Did you go out on your company's long term disability or did you have to go through the SS carousel?

Did you have any concerns that fellow employees would look at you differently, as if, he took the easy way out.

I'm not sure were you are located, but I love to wet a line.

Thanks!!!

Dan

 

[Shredder]

I'm not retired [53], but I've been off of work for about 12 weeks after a lumbar fusion L2-L3. None of this stuff is really worked related, just the normal wear and tear with some trauma mixed in. I've also had 2 cervical fusions, resulting in my neck being fused from C2-C7 -- I've got screws and hardware everywhere. This lower back fusion has been the toughest surgery/rehab that I've been through. I still have a disc at L5-S1, that may also need to be fused. And, I'm not sure that the current fusion is taking.

My concern is I'm 12 weeks out, still on pain meds, doing the PT and I still have episodes where I have spasms/pain of a sharp knife in my back. I'm on short term disability for a few more weeks and then I'll need to decide the next step. I do have long-term disability. Did you go out on your company's long term disability or did you have to go through the SS carousel?

Did you have any concerns that fellow employees would look at you differently, as if, he took the easy way out.

I'm not sure were you are located, but I love to wet a line.

Thanks!!!

Dan

Hey Dan, sorry to hear about your back troubles.
I went out on a work related disability retirement, so our cases are different. And I'm still going though the SS disability carousel. I've been turned down as too healthy, and am appealing. It goes by a combonation of disability level and age. It looks like if I was 55 it would not be a problem.
Fellow employees sometimes will look at you different, can't help it it's human nature, but it is you, you have to worry about. My best advice would be to get a good labor attorney for leagal advice as well as following your pt to the letter. Better to find out your rights now rather than wait till your in the human resourses office, and not sure of what to do. Hopefully it will just be an exersise in caution.
A little warning, sometimes my fishing is harder on the liver than the back. I fly fish with a friend who has a drift boat. After years of fighting swift currents, uneven stream bottoms, slogging though swamps, it is a joy to silently drift down a nice trout stream, covering 100 times more water than you ever could without a boat. We make a day of it stopping often for pit stops, food and drink to sustain our selfs.........Shredder