Why People Aren’t Waiting Until 65 Anymore: The Psychology of Intermittent Retirement
Carl Fritzen is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and founder of Heart and Mind Healing in Denver, Colorado
What “Intermittent Retirement” Actually Means
For a long time, the standard path was simple. Work for decades, save what you can, and eventually retire. Life happens later.
That idea is starting to shift.
Intermittent retirement is a way of approaching life where people take intentional breaks throughout their working years instead of waiting until the end. They might work for a stretch of time, step away to travel or reset, then return to work again. It is not about avoiding responsibility. It is about rethinking when life is supposed to happen.
Some people spend a year traveling the country in an RV, then settle into a job for six months or a year before heading out again. Others take shorter breaks between roles, using that time to rest, explore, or simply exist without constant pressure.
The structure looks different for everyone, but the underlying idea is the same. Life is not something we need to delay.
Why People Aren’t Waiting Until 65 Anymore
A lot of people are not convinced that the systems previous generations relied on will be there for them in the same way. Retirement no longer feels guaranteed. Waiting decades to finally slow down can feel like a gamble.
At the same time, the pace of life has changed. Work follows people home. Expectations are higher. Burnout is more common, even for people who are doing well on paper. If that’s something you’ve been dealing with, you can learn more about how therapy helps with burnout.
When you combine uncertainty about the future with constant pressure in the present, it makes sense that people would start asking a different question.
Not “How do I make it to retirement?”
But “How do I make this sustainable?”
That question often shows up in therapy, especially for people feeling stuck between pressure and exhaustion.
The Desire to Live Now, Not Later
There is something very human about wanting to experience life while you are still in it.
For some, that looks like working intensely for a period of time, saving money, and then stepping away to travel. They are not quitting work entirely. They are creating space for something else to exist alongside it, especially in a country that feels like retirement is continually being pushed further away from them.
That rhythm, work, pause, work, pause, reflects a shift in priorities. Instead of putting life on hold, people are trying to weave it in.
When Stability Stops Meaning What It Used To
There is also a quieter shift happening in how people define stability.
For a long time, stability meant staying in one place, building a career, and accumulating things that reflected progress. A house. A routine. A predictable path.
That definition does not feel as solid to some people anymore.
There was a story of a couple preparing for retirement who lost nearly everything they owned in a fire while moving. Instead of rebuilding in the traditional sense, they took time to recover and ended up trying something different. They began living part of their time on cruise ships, then staying in hotels between trips, creating a rhythm that worked within their budget.
What started as a loss turned into a completely different version of stability.
Not tied to a place. Not tied to possessions. It was just something that worked for them.
Why Rest Feels So Hard Even When We Want It
Even with all of this, taking time off is not easy.
A lot of people struggle with rest, even when they know they need it. Slowing down can bring up discomfort, especially for people dealing with constant mental noise or overthinking. There can be guilt around not being productive, or a sense that time is being wasted.
For many, identity becomes closely tied to what they do. If you are not working, achieving, or moving forward, it can feel like something is wrong.
That makes the idea of stepping away, even temporarily, feel more complicated than it looks from the outside.
The Real Goal Isn’t Escaping Work
Most people are not trying to stop working altogether.
They are trying to find a way to live that does not feel like something they have to endure.
Intermittent retirement, in many cases, is not about rejecting work. It is about creating a life where work is not the only thing that exists. A way to connect with themselves, and, maybe others in a more profound way.
Some people find that through structured breaks. Others find it by changing how they approach their day-to-day life. There is no single way to do it.
But the question underneath it tends to be the same.
How do I build something that feels sustainable?
Conclusion
The idea of intermittent retirement reflects something deeper than a trend.
It shows that people are starting to question the assumption that life is something you wait for. That fulfillment, rest, and meaning all come later, after enough work has been done.
For a lot of people, that no longer feels like a safe bet.
While most of us are not going to pack up and disappear for a year at a time, the underlying desire still applies. People want more control over their time. They want space to reset. They want a life that feels livable now, not just someday.
That kind of change does not require a complete overhaul.
Sometimes it starts with understanding what is not working, and being honest about what might need to shift.
If you’ve been feeling stuck in that cycle of pressure and burnout, therapy can help you step back and figure out what actually works for you.
Carl Fritzen is a licensed professional counselor and the owner of Heart & Mind Healing in Denver, Colorado. He works with individuals navigating anxiety, burnout, and life transitions, helping them build sustainable ways of living that feel grounded, intentional, and manageable.
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