I ask this with hopeful expectation.

I have had a couple people with other chronic illnesses (RA & Lupus) tell me that they felt physically better after retirement, no doubt due to less stress, less fatigue, less everything.

I fully expect to go through the stages of loss (already getting a head start) but I'm wondering about the experiences of you who are already retired due to medical limitations.

I'm really, really hoping that after I get done work (*sob*) I'll have more energy and less anxiety and all. Tell me your stories, good and bad. Were you "better" after you retired?

yeah physically yes, but as you know what i am going through now so some times mentally not so great but that's not MSbs so its irrelevant, yes my MS bs did ease up, and or wasn't being affected by working stress body stress ect...., seems like i had a bit more energy too

hope that helps some

Well, I didn't really retire...I had to stop working due to the MS . But, my job was so stressful that I really didn't have a choice. I was working 60+ hours a week and running on fumes. Some of that was my fault, too. Just trying to keep busy.

I did feel better after I left work. In fact, I had no idea how really stressed I was until after I had left. I feel so much better now...it's amazing.

Yeah, I miss the social interaction but I do not miss the constant drama that goes along with working in an office environment. It was ridiculous.

I thought I'd miss it more than I have but I've been pleasantly surprised!

same here Kel I had no idea how much work was influencing my MSbs till after i was done

All my docs think I look much better now that I've left the workforce. My neuro even commented on it the last I saw him, saying that, despite the MS stuff, it was the best he's ever seen me look. We talked and he agrees the stress of my job (even at part time) didn't help matters before.

On my good days, I still sometimes wistfully think of doing a part time job. Then a bad day hits to remind me why I'm not working. It's been an adjustment for me to not work, but I'm really starting to see it as a good thing. It took a few months for me to get to this point, I'll admit, but things are looking up.

I think it depends on how you retire, by choice or by mandate. I was forced to retire about 5 years ago due to my MS.

I was a work-a-holic. I loved to work. I made a medium income but could support us. I did not plan well for when the paychecks would stop.

I think that my stress is much higher in retirement because I don't have an off-shore bank account with a gazzilion dollars in it.

I wish all the time I could work again, mainly because that would mean I wouldn't have MS.

The bottom line is NO, I do NOT feel better once I retired.

I was disabled for 16 months after a car accident and lost my job in the process. It took me quite a while to adjust because a lot of my identity was wrapped up in my ability to work. So I didn't look at it as a relief.

That said, it was. My stress level decreased greatly and I was able to enjoy doing the little things because I had time to do that. Once I let myself realize that I was a person even if I couldn't work and that was ok, that I could contribute to society in other ways, I was fine. But boy, what a mind adjustment for me.

I was a bit of a workaholic and was very involved in the community. Working full-time, volunteering at my kids' school, president of my neighborhood community group, going to school 3/4 time.... yeah, it was tough to adjust. Now I stay a lot less involved. Plus, I can't take the stress. Work is enough for me right now and even that is more than I can take sometimes.

it took a while, but yes.

I was forced to retire after a fall. it was a horrible fall, and I couldnt reach the minimum standards required to regain my work spot. I missed my job, I missed my co workers, I missed being useful, and had to learn a whole new way of life. it took some time to learn how to live without being on the clock.

As the years have ticked by, I see a dramatic change in my energy, stamina, health, and over all attitude. Had you asked me in the first year, I would have said NO! but after some time to learn how, I vote yes, everytime.

Yeah, what Dejibo said--that's what I was getting at.

I chose to retire from the workforce years ago although I keep our business books through 2003. DH semi retired at 62 so my job was less difficult than it had been.

I do not miss the stress and turmoil of running our own business nor do I miss the stress of the outside workforce..

Now, when I think about having to go back to work, I .

YES, I am much better off now and love it..