[paulat585]

I have/had the same problem with retirement. Got all my self esteem from work, was a respected expert, always called upon to solve problems. Had long commutes and long working hours with lots of stress. At first I tried to fill the void with new hobbies, travel, etc. but it didn't feel the same. I finally resolved it (on most days) by telling myself that I needed to find a new way to feel good about myself. Now I am okay even if I haven't found another way to feel good because I can just tell myself that I am still looking. I agree that it takes at least a year after you leave your job to adjust to retirement. I retired up North, adjusted up there and then 8 years later moved here, so now I have hundreds of more ways to explore feeling good about myself.