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Ask
Dr. Ceren: Psych-Ing Yourself For Retirement (Part 1 of 2) If retirement is in your not too
distant future and you feel distress when contemplating your change
of status, consider what the term "retirement" means to you.
Does it mean that you expect to
be treated differently, as an old-timer, or a non-productive citizen?
Will it cause you to become invisible in a culture glorified in
the media by the beauty and vigor of youth? Does it mean a loss
of friends and colleagues you have made in the workplace? They
can remain in your life if your relationships were close. You
can still socialize with them, perhaps meeting for lunch occasionally
or at parties.
Does retirement signify that work
will no longer dictate your schedule? Perhaps you will feel a
tremendous sense of relief and freedom when no longer ruled by
the clock. However, if you describe yourself as a "creature of
habit" you may feel uncomfortable with a lack of structure. You
will realize this when you feel anxious contemplating how to spend
your new-found time and you may find contact in developing a new
schedule for yourself. Join a gym and attend daily at your self
appointed times. During your working years, work schedules and
raising a family may have consumed you. You may have behaved like
a robot--as though you were controlled remotely. You didn't have
the time to get in touch with yourself--unless problems led you
to seek psychotherapy.
If you have not had the time to
get in touch with yourself. Now is the time to learn who you are,
what really excites and what bores you. You must re-acquaint yourself
with aspects that were hidden because you had no time to explore
them.
This is the time to emotionally
prepare for a new stage in life -- much as you did when you became
an adult. Only now you have more freedom to investigate your options.
You no longer are in a race to find a mate, to have children,
to prepare for an appropriate career and save money for your retirement.
The stress from forcing yourself to compete in the marketplace
is no longer there--unless you are the kind of person who thrives
on competition. If so, you can develop a plan that includes competitive
activities in your retirement years.
It is best to look at this period
of your life as an adventure. An opportunity to grow in new ways.
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