Could you still do your job?

No. I was struggling at the end and younger staff were managing much better, I got the message.

Sorry, Margiknot, got your name wrong...

Oh yes, Margiknow, the daily commute, three hours a day into and back from London - urgh!!

I retired from teaching nine years ago, after decades in the classroom, and within 2yrs I knew I couldn't go back and perform. I hadn't got the energy, the oomph and frankly the bottle. I took 6 months off in 1980s, and it was hard enough starting in a new school, part-time, then.

Yes. I'm a sahm and do my husband's books - still do. He still works as well, managing our daughters in his business. We fare well - our normal.

energy, not enegery - Doh!

Physically and technology-wise, yes. Mentally and in terms of enegery, definitely not - political support is a young person's game!

I retired ( late 60s) because I felt I was beginning to struggle- with the IT the new technology and my failing vision. Things were changing too fast for me to be certain I was keeping up! So, no I could not go back. I don’t miss the commute either.

A week or two of intensive study and updating on modern technology and, ys, I could do my job. I am an economist who specialised in business information, making sure senior managers had all the business information they needed from market research to knowing when the top people in a company were sacked as the senior manager was on a flight to India to meet them.

I did return to work for six months 8 or 9 years after I retired. I worked as a volunteer with a charity for the aged in their information department and when the manager went on maternity leave, I went back to paid work as her maternity cover.

DH, now 81, has never stopped working. He is a chartered engineer specialising in the installation of offshore windfarms, and while he no longer does field work or travels for business, about once a month he still has Zoom meetings with one company to talk through any problems they are having with installations.

I still do! I was a SAHM who did a lot of volunteering.

I still run the house, babysit if called upon, have regular family visits and I do lots of volunteering.

No. I retired from banking nearly 12 years ago. I was already feeling overwhelmed by all the changes and the technology.
Goodness knows what it’s like now.

But seeing as there are hardly any branches left……

I wouldn’t fancy being on a building site at 6:30 am, in theory I could, but I’m very glad I’m not!

MissA -

No, not at all. I still do some teaching, small numbers and voluntary work- but full time, full classes, never!

Yes and I still do, just less of it.
Could I go back to full time teaching - No.
I can manage what I do and being called in to do odd full days, but week in, week out with all the extras? I wouldn’t and couldn’t.

Definitely! I retired decades ago from a physics laboratory and though there must be technical developments, I am sure I could catch up. Not a physically demanding job though, couldn’t do one of those. And I wouldn’t go back, I was bored, plus they were going to move me to a day job and so I took the early retirement on offer.

Yes I could if it was part-time. I simply don’t have the stamina to keep up with a class of 5 year olds for a whole day anymore!

Miss A, life’s a b**** sometimes isn’t it. Sending a

No, absolutely not!

As a dispensing pharmacy assistant, brain and experience say yes, hips and feet say no.

No, absolutely not. It’s decades since I left my job (lecturing in English language) in order to look after my children. I haven’t kept up with developments in the subject and have no desire to.

My BP plummeted when I retired. I had just ended up being cross all the time. I could see how things should be done and what people actually needed but was so sick of the endless red tape to try to breach.

As did I Aveline although I am mentally alert at 81 I am partially sighted and now have deafness caused by a benign brain tumour. I doubt if my new knees would see me through a day on my feet. I was delighted to leave the teaching side behind.

English teacher and yes definitely!

I don't think I could do the job I did 20 years ago - too stressful but I am still doing the job I took on 6 years ago and I am 72 now. I'm lucky because it is part time and WFH, but I don't think I could manage a daily commute anymore. Getting myself downstairs for a 10.00 log on is difficult enough, I would not manage leaving every day at 9 to catch a bus!

I worked in NHS !