Keeping yourself sane in retirement

beer monkey wrote:
BM...working most of the time...

(They finished that 10000baht temple yet old chap..?)

Which megathread relates to this cheaper than chips Temple,can you post a link.ta vely much

Well, to get back on how to keep sane.

1. A good woman, or a few bad ones!
2. An internet connection - if you have not got one, an excuse to go into town for a bit most days.
3. Fishing - there are a number of places to go, good a couple of times a week.
4. Gardening. There is always something you can do, a gardeners work is never done.
5, Books, music, Tv, films - as you prefer.
6. The grand project - that book you always meant to write, do some research (I used to be a freshwater biologist years ago), painting, something else artistic.
7. Meet friends and chat, or fix the world.

If i get all that done, there will be no time for the wifes shopping expeditions and all the visits to family she has planned.

As a last resort, sitting by your self in a bar with a bottle - If that happens, revise list above and start again.

With hindsight as my guide,I would say the first thing to do is learn to take long relaxing breaths,do some medatative slowing down and relaxing!Start out with a long easy vacation attitude,then each day or so,expand your new routines of living retired in Thailand!

Many things will seem almost 180 degrees different than what you are used to in your home country,don't react negatively w/o understanding the difference,the reasoning behind it,then,incorp it into your life ,or not,but ,above all accept the differences!

Your retirement ''niche'' will slowly develop over time and you will find that the hours of the day get shorter and shorter!

Above all,don't rush anymore,remember that you are retired and don't have to!Like anything in life ,some time is needed for adjusting,relax and enjoy!You will eventually find more than enough things to get rid of the projected fear of ''going insane''!

Legally all work including volunteering,requires a WP,but if a gov't or community asks you to volunteer,you will not encounter any problems about a WP.If you are offending or competing with Thais,flagrantly blocking their ability to earn,you will have problems concerning WP's!

Don't think too hard about it. It's not a job. Just let it happen.

I marvel at UM posters telling me how to dress when I visit a brothel-bar, how to retire, how to make a proper breakfast.
Damn, what's next? A thread on how to breathe?

Any thoughts or suggestions about keeping sane in retirement?

Being a little crazy, as most of us are, will surely help you from going insane on those pull your hair out days.

beer monkey wrote: They finished that 10000baht temple yet old chap..?

I'm not sure if it's finished yet. I was trying to find it on the map to tell you the name of it. If you are coming into Udon up the kon khean Rd, straight over the ring road crossroads and turn left before the military hospital you will head down towards the wat. As you drive under the arch into the place you will pass a lake on the left which OT and his Mrs released a turtle the size of a dustbin lid once, so if you see it you know where that came from. Anyway continue up the Rd and you will see the new wat being constructed straight in front. The Head monk or whatever they are called got killed a couple of years ago in a car accident. There are Isaan people living in bangkok that donated more than a million towards the construction of the new wat and there were rice farmers that donated 50 baht or whatever they had, so it wasn't really a question of the money - it was just to help out and make the Mrs happy. OT's not buddist but I understand how much it means to my wife to do something like that.
Back on subject -Read OT's posts in your retirement and become insane but never bored.

OT.........another true story,......

TP,breathing might be a good topic Doing it certain ways has many beneficial effects for many many people.I do it sometimes to relax,let out negative feelings and energy.But some people really know how to do for overall health benefits,Yoga comes to mind!

Ain't retirement grand ?

nkstan wrote:TP,breathing might be a good topic Doing it certain ways has many beneficial effects for many many people.I do it sometimes to relax,let out negative feelings and energy.But some people really know how to do for overall health benefits,Yoga comes to mind!

Ain't retirement grand ?

Stan you just posted this when I was thinking about it. Breathing, yes Texpat, a world on its own.

I use the 4 breaths per minute if in stress or not feeling well.
Necessary is breathing with your belly rather than with your chest. You lay down, take a slow but very deep breath, keep it 1 second and slowly breathe out, using (look at it!) your belly. This way you only breathe 4x per minute and as you breathe very deeply oxygen gets also into the small lungs that provide blood stream to important organs like kidneys and bladder. This will improve the functioning of them.
You only do this for 2-3 minutes, if you had a faster heart beat or faster breathing it will be normal after that.

You see Tex? Try it, keeps you off the street and this forum

Joe

May I ask a question? What if you weren't sane before retirement? Is there any retro/treatment/therapy available over here you can do to make up for it? Not that I'm fully or overly qualified but it might help others?

Funman wrote:May I ask a question? What if you weren't sane before retirement? Is there any retro/treatment/therapy available over here you can do to make up for it? Not that I'm fully or overly qualified but it might help others?

Well, some seem to find sedating themselves with alcohol a form of remedial treatment. It can also give a more laid back perspective to life, though it's not retrospective in its effect.

I'm still evaluating the situation. It's a long course of therapy.

Dear UM -- I'm about to retire.
Do you recommend I crumple or fold my toilet paper before swabbing my bung?
I'm putting off my retirement for six months pending the results of this survey.
Not sure I can manage without this very important piece of advice.

Life without Nanny will be a chore. I can barely contain my apprehension.