I'm retired

[FRx]

Didn't know where to post this but definitely knew I had to post this.
Been part of this group for a while and deeply appreciate what I learned from Jacob and everyone on here.

I have a paid off condo and about $460k invested.
My overhead is less than $1,500/mo so I'm financially independent.

I have enough savings to get me through a couple of years, I'll probably take advantage of that.
There are several things that interest me so I'll pursue those, they will likely generate income, so I'll live off of that.

I wasn't planning on retiring until 2019, age 41 but I conveniently burnt out of practicing medicine just a couple of weeks ago.
I was getting a lot of anxiety, then a couple of panic attacks.

Interestingly, all the things you read about 'engineering your layoff' is true.
I went to my boss and calmly explained what was going on.
He tried everything to keep me on, more administration time, less clinical work...
I'm just not in it for the money anymore.

I have signed up with a local medical group to do volunteer work in the community.
I'll pursue a few other charity stuff.

So far it feels awesome. I didn't even realize that what I had done is retire.
I felt like I was drowning at work, totally overwhelmed and that's when I went to my boss.
He accepted my resignation a few days ago and just last night I realize that shit, I'm retired.

[chenda]

Congrats!

[rube]

+1
Make sure you recover well from your anxiety and panic attacks. Please keep posting here also in the future.

[jennypenny]

Congratulations!

I hope it helps with the anxiety. It didn't with me and I had to seek out CBT, but maybe yours is work-related since it started recently.

[C40]

Congratulations. WOO HOOOO!!

[BRUTE]

nice

[pukingRainbows]

Congratulations!
It sounds like the beginning of a new journey for you.
Keep us updated!

[Did]

Congrats friend. We have a similar story - good to see someone without millions getting out at around 40. I also suffered from burnout in a profession. I've survived - thrived - 3 years so far. No going back. Welcome!

[JamesR]

Congratulations. Now your only job is to manage your investments

[steveo73]

Well done.

[IlliniDave]

Wow! Congrats and best wishes!

[Sclass]

I wasn't planning on retiring until 2019, age 41 but I conveniently burnt out of practicing medicine just a couple of weeks ago.
I was getting a lot of anxiety, then a couple of panic attacks.

.

Congratulations.

Just curious because I'm not a doctor, what were the main sources of anxiety?

Personally I'd be worried if I had too any people to help but not enough working solutions. Or maybe the stakes of somebody's life on my hands would be too hard to make calls on.

There are a lot of neat small business opportunities for doctors who want part time work. I still see my old neighbor on late night TV selling herbal arthritis cures after he retired from a career in the OR. He has literally become an actor.

[FRx]

The anxiety probably came from doing work that I was no longer emotionally vested in. After practicing for a few years one realizes that we need to give out a lot less antibiotics and radiation and just let things be. Unfortunately the lawyers and administration are not going to agree.

If I just do what the patients expected before walking into the door then it's generally a very good and friendly interaction.

If I practice real medicine then it's a whole different ball game. So it's probably this shift, which I'm sure has been there for a long time but I've just become sensitive to now, that had me feel distant from the job.

I'll keep my eye out for responsible business ideas using my medical knowledge. If anyone has ideas please post them.

[jennypenny]

Concierge medicine is big around me. Could you transition into that?

[FRx]

Concierge medicine generally attracts those who are impatient and well off. They like to exert their control on their consultants by repeatedly saying "I pay good money for this service therefore I want xyz". It's a really easy well to make money in medicine. You charge a person a $5,000-10,000 retainer a year just to have access to you. Then you bill their insurance. You call in meds for them without seeing them for "convenience" and you order whatever imaging they want and bill their insurance. I suppose there could be really sustainable models of it out there too, I haven't come across them and I've peripherally kept up with the trends in concierge medicine.

[Riggerjack]

Excellent. Enjoy your time off.


My wife suffers from anxiety. I remind her of what Teleb says about stress. Stress is good, if it is intermittent. It is important to recover before stressing again. But equally important to avoid relaxation becoming the norm, as then stress gets an over reaction.

Balance in all things.

[SimpleLife]

Excellent. Enjoy your time off.


My wife suffers from anxiety. I remind her of what Teleb says about stress. Stress is good, if it is intermittent. It is important to recover before stressing again. But equally important to avoid relaxation becoming the norm, as then stress gets an over reaction.

Balance in all things.

I've wondered about this for a while. When one ends up free of the BS at work by reaching FIRE, does the other daily BS of daily life become the stuff we dread? Right now I don't dread the other daily life stuff largely because it pales in comparison to work BS.

[jennypenny]

Concierge medicine generally attracts those who are impatient and well off. They like to exert their control on their consultants by repeatedly saying "I pay good money for this service therefore I want xyz". It's a really easy well to make money in medicine. You charge a person a $5,000-10,000 retainer a year just to have access to you. Then you bill their insurance. You call in meds for them without seeing them for "convenience" and you order whatever imaging they want and bill their insurance. I suppose there could be really sustainable models of it out there too, I haven't come across them and I've peripherally kept up with the trends in concierge medicine.

Most of the ones I know about personally aren't quite as cynical as you stated. One person I know is in a small VC firm, and the company keeps one on retainer. A doctor I know specializes in (very wealthy) families with special needs children. That kind of client travels frequently and wants someone to call if there's an issue with their child when they are abroad, and will sometimes fly the doctor to where they were to assess the situation. The common thread in all of the discussions I've been a part of regarding concierge medicine indicate that it's frequent travelers who are most interested in the service.

Figure out a fun niche market, like catering to bands or full-time sailors or something else that you enjoy. You could volunteer for races or unusual sporting events or challenges* to become involved in those communities. Use your medical skills as a way to meet the kind of people you want to meet in retirement.

*I can't remember where I read it, but I recently read an article about someone who climbed all 7 peaks and had a volunteer medical staff that assisted throughout since the goal was to raise money for a charity. Even without earning an income, it would still mean free travel and becoming involved interesting people.

[jennypenny]

Sorry, I think my post came off as pushy but that's not my intention. It's just that medical skills are valuable, so if I were you I would try to leverage them to enhance your post-ERE life.

[FRx]

Oh not at all! I really enjoyed reading your ideas and really appreciate the feedback... if anything I was thinking to myself "dude, don't be such a cynical dick". So yea, definitely love the ideas and it got me thinking about something things. Much appreciated.