Stress and Retirement/Relaxation Issues
I taught school for 29 years and retired at the end of May. My last day was a Tuesday and I woke up the next Saturday with terrible jaw pain, thinking id slept wrong. It didn’t go away so I called my dentist and went on Tuesday, exactly a week after my last day.
My TMJ was inflamed, teeth are fine. She suggested I use warm heat, dual action Advil and maybe massage. It still hurts, so I got a massage today with a masseuse experienced in TMJ issues. She told me retirement is a major life event (I think I’d heard that but blew it off) and found pretty much every muscle in my neck and back to be horribly tight. I’m going back on Thursday for more.
My question is, what kinds of things have others retiring find helpful to actually relax? I’ve always been pretty tightly-wound and can’t seem to get into “calm, peaceful” mode. Thanks!