Adjusting to Retirement

Adjusting to life in retirement involves creating a purpose or meaning for your life, looking after your health and well-being, and developing lasting connections with friends and family.

The hardest part is often simply accepting that a part of your life is over - that the activity you did for the last 20-40 years is no longer what you do each day. But this doesn't mean you aren't going to be doing ANYthing! There are many other activities - some new - that will take up your time if you let them. Part of your new job in retirement is to make sure that you don't get overwhelmed trying to do all the things.

Remember that it's okay to say no to people sometimes - you don't HAVE to be busy all the time. The most important point to keep in mind is that retirement is not only about filling time; it's about discovering new opportunities for growth, happiness, and fulfillment.

One of the ways to do this is to prioritize happiness in your life:

• slow down and take time to just be by yourself
• do some journalling or meditation
• focus on being present in whatever you're doing - don't always be thinking ahead about the next task
• remember to ask yourself if you're doing an activity because you WANT to or because you feel you HAVE to do it - and cut out some of the "have to do it" activities!