This
i retired at 55. I was burnt out with long hours, 65% of nights not in my own bed due to work travel etc. I was having the most awful menopausal symptoms and became depressed and having panic attacks. I was , looking back, quite ill.
The way I figure is that my mum and maternal grandma were both dead by 61. My dad is 86 and now has LBD. He spent his 60 and 70s travelling all over the world and doing all sorts of things in his retirement, was physically active etc. Then he got to 80 and his world closed in, he lost most of his sight, and now is sectioned under the mental health act and has been so for 6 months now. he has had around 18 years in which he enjoyed his retirement. Now he has no idea of where he is, what is happening and is plagued with terrifying delusions. In truth I’d certainly prefer to be dead than in his situation.
i hang out with a lot of women older than me- their ability to get out and about and enjoy the things they once did is limited in some cases. Ease of mobility hits first, so much pain walking and moving. Some can no longer indulge fully in the passions they’ve had for last 15-20 years. They’re pretty much all in their 70s.
so whilst we live longer and it’s true to say retiring at 55 means you may well be retired for 30 or even 40 years, most of that will not be in good health and fitness and being able to be independent
The irony is that the harder your physical work was during your working life, and the lower the wage/more deprived you were, the more your retirement from 70 years old will be fraught with illness, mobility issues and poverty.
The wealthy can retire at 70-75, with their sedentary work styles, better health outcomes, money etc. everyone else has been conned by government to think that increasing life expectancy means increasing happy leisure years . It is not true.
I retired with very specific focus on what I was going to do. I do a very small amount of volunteering but mainly indulge my hobbies . That has opened new horizons for me. I have now got a more active social life, less isolation, and many very good friendships. It has restored my mental health. At one time I thought I’d need to keep on doing part of my job to make ends meet until my state pension kicks in at 67. But I’ve looked at saving money, live fairly carefully on my pension and manage fine - I don’t have holidays but then I don’t need to even think about the work I used to do. After nearly 5 years now since I retired I don’t miss it, in fact the thought of that work makes me feel rather sick now.
if you can afford it, then aiming to retire in late 50s - early 60s is a positive- but only if you are self motivated and have plans about what you will be doing in retirement to keep you stimulated and engaged with the world. Certainly I’d be recommending anyone to try to save as much as possible to retire in mid 60s, or at least reduce their hours. It’s a fallacy and myth that you will be enjoying your retirement to the full in your 80s and 90s. Some will, but a lot won’t.