Retirement may be hazardous to your health

[utrecht]

Back story: I haven't been to a doctor in more years than I can count. I never get sick. I haven't even had a flu shot in 25 years.

So I retired on Jan 23rd. My mother in law came into town for our retirement party and she had a stomach bug. On Jan 26th I woke up running at both ends. On Jan 27th we left for 5 days in Cancun. So I was sick for the first day or two of vacation. The bug is gone but for some I was left with never ending indigestion.

On Feb 6th I was bringing a heavy box of floor tiles down from the attic and tweaked something in my back. I laid the tiles a day or two after that and my back started killing me. On Feb 8th my back was so bad I slept in my car because I couldn't lay down and the car seat reclined to a comfortable spot.

Yesterday, Feb 10th, I cancelled our 4 day trip to Vegas that wouldve started on Feb 12th and I went to the doctor (I hate going to the doctor so that should be an indication how much pain I was in). I have 2 inflamed discs that are pressing on my Sciatic nerve. The good news is a steroid pack, some pain killers and muscle relaxers have me feeling better and the doc says I should be back close to normal in a few days.

So after not having taken any medication for many years, in the past few days Ive taken, Prevacid, Steroids, Hydrocodone, Tramadol, Cyclobenzaprine, anti nausea meds and exlax for constipation caused by the pain killers.

Nobody told me retirement would be hazardous to my health!

 

[NW-Bound]

Gah! If the above happened to me, I would apply for another job pronto.

Early retirement is obviously not for everyone. So, you try it, and if it does not work, well, you'll just have to go back to the old way.

 

[aja8888]

I'd be careful with the pain killer. That stuff is addictive. Hope you get better soon and lay off the tile work.

 

[Walt34]

Growing old is not for the faint of heart.

The alternative is worse though.

 

[Corporateburnout]

C'mon admit it the Patriots Superbowl win must have stressed you out and caused most of your health issues..........

Hope you feel better.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Back pain and sciatica are no fun. I hope you are on the road to recovery now.

 

[MRG]

Back pain and sciatica are no fun. I hope you are on the road to recovery now.

+ 1
No fun at all. Hope you're well soon.

 

[ls99]

Utrecht it is obvious from your post that you were too busy working to pay attention to your body, and were well isolated from the in-laws.

Get well and keep it that way. Can't have you going around giving bad name to retirement.

 

[ChainsBeGone]

Back pain is no fun. I spend a couple days each year in bed when it strikes. It comes with no notice, like when reaching for a box of cereal or bending over to pet the dog. It's the result of compressed discs in the back and neck from abuse during the working years. I just have to ride it out and the whole process takes about a week from onset, to bed, to limited exercise, to return to normalcy. Hope you feel better soon.

 

[Amethyst]

I broke my wrist at the gym. Obviously, exercise is hazardous to one's health, especially combined with retirement! Hope you feel better soon.

Amethyst

 

[Gumby]

Retirement may indeed be hazardous, but I'm willing to risk it.

 

[MichaelB]

Nobody told me retirement would be hazardous to my health!

This is a perfect example of "Correlation is not causation".

 

[Which Roger]

I've had more aches and pains (and used more bandaids) since I ERd, primarily because I replaced a lot of desk-sitting with manual labor including a lot of heavy lifting, using power tools, etc. But the improvements in my mental state far outweigh any of the negatives.

 

[nuke_diver]

I hear you....though in my case my prep for ER is the hazard as I try to get things done while still on the nice HC plan I have now and not the one I will have that will cost me money OOP.

So this year I have had my knee surgery already, next week a crown to be done (I am more anxious about this than the knee surgery ) and need to get a full physical ...who knows what that would turn up...

But it's kind of like getting your car checked out before a long trip...you don't want to have a breakdown in the middle of nowhere

 

[Sojourning]

Logic is a wonderful thing. False logic can even be fun.

George wears a hat. George is a man. Therefore all men wear hats.

Early retirees are obviously goal oriented. They achieve their goals. From birth, we are all on the way to death. Some simply reach that goal sooner or later than others.

Therefore, we could say that early retirees are more likely to achieve the end of life sooner than those with less ambition and drive to achieve. Therefore early retirement may indeed be hazardous to your health.

How does that sound?

 

[freebird5825]

I've had more aches and pains (and used more bandaids) since I ERd, primarily because I replaced a lot of desk-sitting with manual labor including a lot of heavy lifting, using power tools, etc. But the improvements in my mental state far outweigh any of the negatives.

Ditto...I am in better physical shape at age 56.5 than I was at age 48 when I FIREd in 2007.
My doctor told me I looked 10 years younger when he saw me a few months after FIRE. He actually asked me if I had gone for a facelift without telling him.

I was also a desk jockey in front of the computer non-stop except when I got to w*rk standing up in the R&D laboratory. I had classic RSI (repetitive strain injury) from my fingertips to the middle of my back. Chronic aching pain.

Post FIRE...Substitute heavy lifting for medium level manual labor for me (female) and we are in the same boat. I prefer this FIRE boat to the mental stress plus RSI issues that I knew would never improve in the j*b.

My eating habits are much improved and I exercise in my living room when I want to, not when the j*b schedule permitted.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

Actually sitting for 8 hours a day actually may be more hazardous, unless you follow The Onion's advice on stand up desks, that is "standing up, walking out the door, and never coming back to their place of work again."

 

[FIREd]

I developed a nasty case of plantar fasciitis because I walk and hike so much more. I naturally blame early retirement. Sitting at a desk 8 hours a day would have been safer!

 

[GravitySucks]

Although I'm nursing a bad case of plantar fasciitis and a nasty flu right now, I've been healthier since leaving the office. Little contact with sick people keeps the virus and bacterial infections at bay. Mega-corp had way to many people proud that they never missed a day in 40 years, no matter how many coworkers they infected.

 

[FUEGO]

I developed a nasty case of plantar fasciitis because I walk and hike so much more. I naturally blame early retirement. Sitting at a desk 8 hours a day would have been safer!

I got carpal tunnel from playing too many video games. Just kidding, but I might be at risk...

And hanging out on the back deck in my hammock or on a tropical beach with the occasional sun ray hitting me will probably give me skin cancer.

Guess I better go back to the soft, gentle buzz and glow of the fluorescent tubes in the office. No one ever got melanoma from those.

 

[NW-Bound]

This is a perfect example of "Correlation is not causation".

Oh yeah? Lemme read the OP's post again.

My mother in law came into town for our retirement party and she had a stomach bug. On Jan 26th I woke up running at both ends...

On Feb 6th I was bringing a heavy box of floor tiles down from the attic and tweaked something in my back. I laid the tiles a day or two after that and my back started killing me...

If the OP did not retire, he would not have that retirement party, and he would not catch MIL's bug. Then, if he were still working, he would not have time to fool around with that heavy box of floor tiles, and would have left it alone where it had been for decades, and his back would be fine.

 

[Amethyst]

Also, if he were still working, he could have afforded to pay somebody to lay the floor tiles?

Then, if he were still working, he would not have time to fool around with that heavy box of floor tiles, and would have left it alone where it had been for decades, and his back would be fine.

 

[Cobra9777]

This thread definitely resonates with me. Been retired 1.5 years. At first I started jogging and got a nasty case of plantar fasciitis that took several weeks to heal. Started riding my bike instead. Problem solved. Then, I started doing manual labor around the house, such as building a retaining wall and cutting down several dead trees and splitting the wood. This resulted in 3 or 4 different occasions of severe back injury... in bed for a week each time. Both knees have a tendency to swell up as well with too much hard physical labor.

I've learned to pace myself better since those early days and I also hire out the more physical tasks. Still, with the combination of riding my bike, low-carb diet, reduced work stress, and increased physical activity, my overall health has improved dramatically since ER. My advice is: don't try to do too much early on. The sedentary lifestyle of a Megacorp workaholic does not prepare one for moving large stones or tree trunks.

 

[pb4uski]

It isn't retirement that caused the problem, it was manual labor. Hire it out.

But I think Corporateburnout might be one to something.

 

[razztazz]

I had been retired a few months and had just turned 39. I was on a commonly prescribed drug for a minor condition . Had been talking it for about a week when one night I caught the golden bee-bee and went into anaphylactic shock. I remember standing in the parking lot of apartment building with my keys deciding if I wanted to risk driving to the ER or should I just call 911. I decided I could drive there as fast or faster than an ambulance could get to me so I drove. I just wasn't entirely convinced that could actually die at 39.