One of the unexpected challenges of retirement isn’t money.
It isn’t boredom.
It isn’t even finding things to do.
For many of us, it’s health.
As we get older, health moves closer to the centre of our lives. We attend more appointments, take more medication and become more aware of our bodies than ever before.
For me, part of that journey has been living with Type 2 diabetes.
I was diagnosed around twenty years ago.
Back then the advice seemed straightforward: avoid sugar, get some exercise and keep an eye on things.
For many years that worked well enough.
As I grew older, however, things changed. I eventually needed medication and now take Metformin and Gliclazide for diabetes, along with Ramipril for blood pressure.
Then came a wake-up call.
I developed ketosis and ended up in intensive care.
Experiences like that leave a mark. They remind you that health isn’t something you can simply ignore.
Afterwards I began monitoring my blood sugar more closely.
At first, the blood glucose meter felt like a powerful tool.
I could see the impact of food.
I could see the impact of exercise.
I could see how poor sleep affected my readings.
I could even see the effect of stress.
The information was useful.
Very useful.
But gradually something else happened.
The numbers started to matter a little too much.
A good reading lifted my mood.
A high reading spoiled it.
I found myself analysing every meal, every symptom and every fluctuation.
Without realising it, I had begun allowing the meter to dictate how I felt about my day.
That was never the purpose.
The meter is a tool.
It provides information.
It is not a measure of whether life is going well.
Over the last few years I have kept journals and logs, recorded blood sugar readings, tracked meals and looked for patterns.
One of the things I discovered was that, in my case, carbohydrates often affected my readings more than obvious sugary foods.
Bread.
Rice.
Pastries.
Several carbohydrate foods eaten together.
I also discovered that poor sleep could push my readings higher. Stress could do the same. A short walk after a meal often helped.
The meter taught me a lot.
But perhaps the biggest lesson wasn’t about blood sugar at all.
It was about balance.
Retirement can easily become a cycle of appointments, measurements, medication and worry.
Weight.
Blood pressure.
Blood sugar.
Cholesterol.
Steps.
Sleep.
There is nothing wrong with monitoring these things.
In fact, they can help us stay healthier for longer.
The danger comes when we stop living and start measuring.
A retirement well lived is about more than numbers.
It’s about taking the walk.
Booking the trip.
Seeing family.
Learning a new skill.
Taking photographs.
Writing stories.
Sitting in a café and watching the world go by.
The goal is not to ignore our health.
The goal is to look after it without becoming imprisoned by it.
This article is simply my experience. I am not a doctor and what works for me may not work for you. Always seek advice from your healthcare team regarding your own health and treatment.
As for me, I still use my blood glucose meter.
I still pay attention.
I still learn from it.
But when I’ve taken the reading, I put the meter away and get on with my day.
Because retirement is a journey to be lived, not a condition to be monitored.
And I refuse to be a slave to the blood sugar meter.