You show up for work every day and stay there for a minimum of six and a maximum of twelve hours. Although some days are better, you keep working hard in anticipation of your retirement. You’ve looked into your 401(k) or other employment pension plan to make sure you’ll be able to maintain a comfortable standard of living in the future.
You may be physically and monetarily ready for what’s to come, but how prepared are you for the shifts that will inevitably occur? When planning for retirement, one must be aware of the possibility of developing retirement depression. How can you prevent this from happening again, and how do you handle it now?
In retirement, one’s health and happiness may change.
While there is no such requirement under federal law, some private companies have retirement policies for their employees. To breach anti-discrimination rules, however, a retirement policy cannot be based exclusively on an employee’s age. Our health and energy levels sometimes diminish, even though we have decided to retire independently, and we may feel less secure during retirement because of factors beyond our control.
Retirement is a significant life transition regardless of the motivation behind it. You should know that experiencing a substantial loss in your life, no matter how unexpected, can increase your risk of depression. Retirement means giving up social interaction with coworkers, altering self-identity, and losing financial stability.
Some retirees experience an initial “rush” of excitement at finally having time to pursue their passions. Nevertheless, eventually, you have to come down to earth from the “high” a “sugar rush” offers you. It may feel like a vacation for the first few weeks, but then reality sets in. The job you’ve held for the past four decades or more may have come to define who you are. Who exactly are you now that you don’t identify as that “professional”? What we do for a living is intrinsically linked to our sense of self.
Tips for Recognizing Retirement-Era Depression
For those who have never been diagnosed with depression, understanding the symptoms might be difficult. These symptoms may be so mild that no one in your immediate family seems to have noticed them. Although your or a loved one’s experience with depression will be unique, you may recognize specific shared characteristics.
Some symptoms of retirement-related depression include:
- Need help to maintain interest. This can be for things you used to like doing.
- Enhanced exhaustion. Constant fatigue or weakness is what this describes.
- Sleep. Some people find that they sleep more or less than average, wake up in the middle of the night, and then find it impossible to fall back asleep.
- Unhappiness. Frequent outbursts of anger, restlessness, or tears.
- Sadness. Chronic despair and emotional numbness.
- Appetite. Abnormal increase or decrease in food intake.
- Weight. This may involve a decrease or an increase in weight.
- The capacity of the mind. Problems remembering or focusing.
- Ideation of harming oneself or dying by suicide. Self-injury fantasies or suicidal musings (the risk of suicide is most significant in males over age 75).
Please contact your doctor immediately if you or a loved one begin experiencing any of these symptoms. An accurate diagnosis is crucial for treating any medical issue, including depression. Moreover, it’s possible that you need medical attention for a physical cause of your mood swing.
How to avoid feeling down after retirement
Whether you are just beginning to think about retirement or have already made the transition, there are steps you can take to safeguard your mental health.
- Get checked out. Schedule a checkup with your doctor as part of your commitment to preventative health. In addition, keeping a close eye on your health with periodic checks is critical to preserving your best health. Your doctor may advise you to see a psychiatrist if they suspect depression is the problem.
- Exercise. Once again, we put things off since we need more time, although specific fitness plans require very little of your day. You may go on a scenic walking route or try yoga by yourself or with some buddies. Join a gym or fitness center, or check out some workout videos on YouTube. Working out your body has positive effects on the wellness of your brain.
- Eat healthier. Today is an excellent day to examine what you’re eating closely. While working long hours, we may have opted for a fast food or snack-based diet. The decision to eat better will improve our health in many ways. Make an appointment with a dietitian if you want the most comprehensive advice on improving your diet.
- Make friends and acquaintances. Socializing is good for your health and happiness, whether with a single friend or a large group. Depression often has feelings of isolation as one of its symptoms and causes. Contact a local community or religious center where others with similar interests regularly get together.
- Volunteer. Volunteers are crucial to the operations of countless organizations. Contact your preferred group via phone or in-person to learn more about your choices. Giving back to your community through volunteer work is rewarding.
- Get a job. This advice may seem out of place in a piece about retiring, but bear with me; I promise you, it serves a purpose. Volunteering or working after retirement age has been linked to improved mental health. The “best of both worlds” might be working part-time or as a consultant in your field of competence. You can earn some extra money to complement your pension and make some new friends in the process. Furthermore, research has shown that engaging in cognitively engaging activities can reduce the likelihood of developing dementia or cognitive impairment.
The decision of when to retire is a huge one that should not be made lightly, and a less hectic pace of life may be the best decision you ever make. Yet it can also be a period of mental health challenges, so taking precautions before and during retirement is essential to keep mental health issues like retirement depression at bay.