We've heard a lot about self-care over the last two years. For me, that self-care was about a lot of destressing, a lot of planning and thinking. There were some hard decisions and a lot of lost sleep. 

Self-care as a retiree is different. I'm having to rethink what slots to put things into and whether it is truly self-care or plain old procrastination.

The first rule of retiree self-care is keeping track of what day of the week it is. Physical calendars help. I, for one, need something to write on, to pick up, to easily look ahead with. Since, at least for now, my social calendar is minimal and I no longer have ARD meetings, MTSS meetings, pull-out groups, make-up minutes, and a myriad of associated school items to fill a calendar, one of those little pocket-sized ones works. 

Having a physical calendar will also help me with rule two - keep track of the days of the month. Now that retirement has gently fallen on my shoulders, I'm going to have to be more cognizant of when money comes in, and when it has to go out. 

I'm quickly learning that although the alarm clock was my nemesis for so many years, I still need a schedule. My mind needs it and so does my body. What is on that schedule has changed drastically, of course. What seems to be working so far is getting some "work" done in the mornings, then either add a nap to the schedule or continue working in the afternoons. Work can be pursuing a retirement gig or laundry or housework or an appointment. I'm not going off the rails and rising with the roosters on most mornings, but the feeling of accomplishment when looking back at my morning over lunch removes that feeling of guilt that always seemed to overlay any down time I took before. 

Research has shown that both physical and mental agility slows aging. I'm still trying to find something to inspire my physical agility. I'm still toying with getting a used treadmill. I had one once and actually used it regularly. 

Finding ways to stay mentally agile has been much easier. I was able to tick off several of the researched suggestions: puzzles (my choice is word puzzles of all kinds), games (I am a regular online gamer), and reading (if you know me at all, then duh!). Learning a new language is a possibility. It might be fun to brush up on my French. Arts and crafts would have been more appealing before RA claimed my dexterity but for others...

An exasperating part of self-care that I need to tackle is sleep. This has been an ongoing battle since my teens. I cannot adhere to a bedtime. One night, I may get the sleepies at 7:30; another at around 10; and then there are the nights (many) when the sleepies never appear. Insomnia has been a dreaded partner much of my life. The good side is that as a retiree I can throw in an extra nap if I need it. The down side is I become very stressed on the nights the sandman refuses to darken my door. And, of course, complicating this whole topic is the RA fatigue which has nothing to do with sleep but a whole lot to do with functioning as though I've had sleep.

The final topic of retiree self-care that I've read a lot about is eating. I no longer have the schedule and schoolwork vs cooking time dilemma, so I should be drowning in healthy recipes with lots of kitchen noise as a soundtrack. But eating healthy is expensive! All of those fabulous recipes require ingredients, and I'm finding that those ingredients cost a considerable amount more than my old school week grocery budget. I'm working on this one. Right now the compromise is to cook one meal that usually provides left-overs for at least two nights then rely on old standbys or sandwiches for the rest of the time. 

As with every other reincarnation of myself over my lifetime, I intend to be successful as a retiree. An independent retiree. An independent happy retiree.