My father retired early and it ruined his life. This is what went wrong

Retiring early is a good goal for many people and it can often lead to happiness — if you have plenty of money saved and a clear plan for what to do with your days. Unfortunately, some people are not well-suited to retiring early and end up ruining their lives by doing it — either as they aggressively pursue money at the expense of other things or as they deteriorate during their later years when they no longer have the purpose that work provides. 

One Redditor told the story of his father, who definitely seems to be one of those people who did not benefit from early retirement. The original poster (OP) said his father was always obsessed with retiring early, and he achieved his dream by leaving work at a young age with a big investment account balance plus expensive properties. Despite that, the Redditor said his father has nothing that brings him joy and has developed dementia and substance abuse problems. 

Here’s what the Reddit user said his dad did wrong, along with some tips on how others who are pursing early retirement can avoid this fate.  

1. Leaving health issues untreated 

The biggest issue that has affected the OP’s dad’s ability to enjoy early retirement is his failure to take care of his mental and physical health. The OP said that his dad had long suffered from bulimia, had other mental health issues, and did not take care of his physical health. He also developed substance abuse problems. 

The OP believes these choices led to the development of dementia and other medical conditions at a young age, all of which have impacted his dad’s ability to enjoy retirement.

2. Prioritizing money over family relationships

Another problem the OP’s dad has is a lack of relationships with his family. According to the OP, his dad was so obsessed with money that he spent all day and night working in terrible conditions as a forensic chemist and cleaning up meth labs in the evening. 

Not only did he not spend time with family because he was working, but when he was off work, he also did not participate in family activities or do things to build relationships with his children. Instead, the OP’s dad was so stressed from working all the time, and under poor conditions, that he simply secluded himself from everyone.

Now that he has retired, he doesn’t have a community to spend time with and he is not close to his children. He lacks the social connections and ties that could allow him to enjoy being retired young and having time on his hands.

3. Failing to develop hobbies

Finally, the OP said his dad did not develop any hobbies besides dumpster diving and going to Goodwill since he was always so concerned about spending money. Since he never found things that he loves doing, he doesn’t have activities that bring him joy that he can spend time engaging in as a retiree. 

The Redditor wanted to share these things because he doesn’t want others to turn out like his dad. While he knows many people pursue financial independence and retire rich at a young age, the OP believes that it’s important to have a balance and to cultivate both financial independence and a life with family, friends, and hobbies. 

The OP’s advice is good advice that he learned the hard way from watching his father, and it is advice everyone should take. Finding a balance is key, and working with a financial advisor to make a financial plan that allows you to save while still spending on things you find meaningful can be one of the best ways to achieve that.

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