Although the true definition of independence is ‘freedom from the control, support and aid of others’, remaining independent in retirement may require choices on what support is appropriate so that you can lead the life you want to with the minimum number of compromises.
As we get older, we age. And we all age differently. All of our bodies and minds start to decline but they do so at different rates depending on many different factors. We may be happy at home doing the cleaning as we always did as well as making our meals and doing our paperwork, but we may find that we are more tired than we used to be. It’s not always obvious to make the link, but if these ‘chores’ are making us tired, then we have less energy to do the things we enjoy like play golf, bridge, go to an exhibition, have a walk with friends, look after the grandchildren etc. And if we have less energy we will end up doing less of those things we enjoy. Which then means we are missing out on the things we enjoy because we have run out of energy.
So how do we deal with that. Whilst we don’t want help because we may perceive that shows ‘we can’t cope’ or whatever else we’ve told ourselves, we are shooting ourselves in the foot by not getting that help.
Energy can be sapped by the mental as well as the physical. So if you are spending time thinking of doing things, or doing things that now require more thinking than they used to, then this is the time to get some help.
If using the computer fills you with dread and you procrastinate about it, that’s sapping energy. If the hoovering is just a bit too much, and you always need a rest afterwards, then that’s putting you in energy deficit. If your papers are in a mess and you can’t face sorting them, or can never find what you want, that’s an emotional energy sap.
There are many services out there to help you and charities who can help suggest providers to help you. These range from cleaners, handymen and admin services to carers, meal kits and frozen meal services. You can pick and choose from any of these and using them will mean that your family can spend more quality time with you too, rather than worrying about helping you with tasks when they come and see you.
If you would like more information on our free Zoom 'Retirement Resources' please head to https://www.onestoporganisers.co.uk/retirement-resources/ To find out more about how One Stop Organisers can help you at home or recommend other providers who can help you, please contact us on 033 3014 7053 or info@onestoporganisers.co.uk
