Do I NEED HELP?...or is this normal??...and a THANK YOU!!

[VaCollector]

When does this "giddy" feeling go away?

I know that I'm only three weeks into the rest of my life but every morning I feel like I've got to be one of the luckiest guys in the WORLD!...and I get that "fuzzy feeling" that you get in the pit of your stomach when you're excited about something....kinda like how I felt when school was out for the summer....or Christmas Eve....ya know??

So I'm assuming that I'm not the 1st to have such feelings....so when does it wear off ...or does it??

I can hear SEVERAL posters replies already ~

"I've only been FIRE'd for 10 years...but I'll let you know when it does wear off!!" (which is what I'm hoping is true )

.......................................................................................................................................................

Thank you to this board for all of your advice and for each of you who have shared your life experiences!

I'm sure that I am not the 1st RE who was influenced by the information/advice/discussion/recommendations given here ~ but I do want to THANK YOU ~ as I am certain that I would not have made my decision to RE without this board and the peace of mind that FIRECALC has given me!!

 

[dex]

I don't think it wears off but as with most things it wanes. If I'm sitting around the house and not doing much it is at a low. But if I just get outside for a walk or on the deck with a cup of coffee it comes back and I think how lucky I am.

 

[REWahoo]

Dex described it well. The euphoria does gradually fade over a few weeks/months. The big grin on your face when you wake up each morning and realize you no longer have to go to w*ork will slowly decline to a satisfied smile.

In my case, two years after FIRE, that smile doesn't show any sign of going away.

 

[ladelfina]

It's like LUV.. When you clear out your desk and walk away, you feel like you're in a whole 'nother universe where anything and everything is possible.

Then you settle down a bit.. reality kicks in, you still have dirty dishes and all that jazz, but it's still great. Like looking over at your DW/DW/partner: the conflagration has died down but the warmth, light and radiance remain.

May peace and prosperity continue to be with you.. you earned it!

if I just get outside for a walk or on the deck with a cup of coffee it comes back and I think how lucky I am.

Yep!

 

[kcowan]

May the force stay with you VC! It is funny when people say they could use my experience in their companies. I am flattered then wonder when I will interact with all my friends here and elsewhere. And that ends it.

I loved working, making a difference. I still like making a difference but I get that satisfaction in very different (non-gainful) ways.

Plus there is great merit in stopping and smelling the roses.

 

[Nords]

Dex described it well. The euphoria does gradually fade over a few weeks/months. The big grin on your face when you wake up each morning and realize you no longer have to go to w*ork will slowly decline to a satisfied smile.
In my case, two years after FIRE, that smile doesn't show any sign of going away.

An exception to that rule for working spouses & school-age children means that you have to hide the grin on certain mornings. You can't really go around the house exclaiming "Thank God it's Monday!" or let them see you loading your longboard into the car. There'll be plenty of time for that after they're out the door.

Five years last week & still smiling... retirement is the best set of Navy orders I've ever had.

 

[VaCollector]

An exception to that rule for working spouses & school-age children means that you have to hide the grin on certain mornings. You can't really go around the house exclaiming "Thank God it's Monday!" or let them see you loading your longboard into the car. There'll be plenty of time for that after they're out the door.

I actually have both....my DW is several years my junior and still "in love" with her j*b and my youngest is just ending her freshman year in high school....so I DO try to contain my enthusiasm until after their day has begun....

....and yet I am not always successful

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

i quit work to escape some depression. i remember looking oddly at people who thought it amazing while they probably thought it odd that i wasn't giddy or gloating. for me it wasn't blowing up an inner tube to head to the beach; it was letting some air out of an over-inflated tired.

then it turned out that i got caught retiring partly on expected proceeds of an inherited house with inheritance coming just after the bubble burst. it is hard to view the inherited house as a bond when all i can see is it costing me between $45k & $75k/year in real & lost opportunity costs.

i know many, maybe even most people get excited just in planning for change but i never get excited until i get there. i'm two years into retirement but still just packing for a plane that hasn't taken off yet. so even though, from the outside, it looks to some like i'm there, for now i'm just satisfied with life as it is. maybe i'll get giddy after i get there.

 

[Dreamer]

I just had my one year anniversary on 6/2. I consider myself so fortunate that I was able to take an early retirement and I frequently thank God for my being retired in my prayers! Some days I get caught up in the things that I want to get accomplished today and other days I think, hey I am retired and can just do what I want! What a great feeling.

 

[chinaco]

I suspect that one might become desensitized after some years of retirement. Possibly replace work worries with new worries.

But considering the alternative of dealing with work hassles and the complications work brings... A red hot spike driven into the brain looks alluring.

 

[kcowan]

I suspect that one might become desensitized after some years of retirement. Possibly replace work worries with new worries.

But considering the alternative of dealing with work hassles and the complications work brings... A red hot spike driven into the brain looks alluring.

Ouch!
Worriers will always find something to worry about. Not an ER issue.

But life is full of many things outside of work...