Retirees need to volunteer, not vegetate

Aging column by Dr. Michael Gordon (12-06-2001)
Reprinted with permission from the Toronto Star

"Good morning Doc," comes the cheery greeting as I search for change to pay for my coffee. It's the volunteer helping out at the Women's Auxiliary coffee shop at Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care.

I asked him once why he volunteers three to four days a week. "After I retired from the scrap metal business I found that I had nothing special to do," he explained. "There is only so much relaxing you can do. I was a successful businessman all my life and now I was bored and going crazy."

His sister-in-law suggested he volunteer at Baycrest. "Me, volunteer? What would I do there?" he thought. But after a while he decided to give it a try. "So here I am doing cash at the café, meeting all kinds of nice people. It has really given me some meaning to my days. My sister-in-law was right."

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I met H. at my 11-year-old son's year-end violin recital. After H's granddaughter played her simple sweet tune, the teacher held up his own violin to the audience.

"H. made this violin 25 years ago, and has now started making them again for his grandchildren," the teacher announced. H. took the instrument in his hand, positioned it under his chin and played. It resonated beautifully; it was clear that he was not a novice player. The 72-year-old bowed shyly as the audience applauded his performance.

I asked H. how he came to make violins.

"I made the first one 25 years ago as a hobby," he explained. "I had played the violin for a few years as a teenager but didn't touch the instrument again until I made this one." He became reacquainted with the instrument after he retired when his grandchildren started studying the violin. Now it's grown into a family project and he makes violins for each of them. "You have to keep busy after you retire," he says

H's son agrees that the family violin project keeps his father young at heart. He says his children love the fact that their grandfather is so involved with their musical activities and that he's a music student like they are. He, too, makes lots of mistakes as he learns new pieces.

In my medical practice I'm frequently asked to see patients -- mainly men - who, after retirement, begin a gradual decline into inactivity, boredom and introspection that interferes with a successful aging process. They often become fixated on their medical conditions and expect others (such as their spouse and children) to be involved with them. They often drop out of their social circles, especially if they were related to their working world.

I often suggest to these patients that, as part of therapy, they explore volunteering. Sometimes I take out my prescription pad and tell them I am going to offer them a treatment that is very effective and has virtually no side-effects. They look at me hopefully, amazed that there is such a treatment. I then write on the pad, "Volunteer, two times a week, mornings only" and give it to them. The initial response is often scepticism. However, when the recommendation is coupled with a comprehensive approach to the clinical problem, there is often a gradual acceptance of the concept as worth pursuing.

Women appear more receptive to the idea of volunteering and may have already had experience during their earlier years. Volunteering is often seen as a natural extension of their care-giving roles, especially if they have raised families or looked after siblings and elderly parents.

There are many volunteer opportunities at hospitals and long-term care facilities as well as at other organizations that do sterling work.

The most important step is getting retirees to seriously consider the option. Some of my patients proudly show off the recognition pins they've received after many years of volunteering. Their pride is reflected in they way they talk about their experiences and the friends and colleagues they have made in the process. It is clearly one of the post-retirement activities that give meaning to one's life in later years.

Whatever your retirement plans, it is worthwhile before retirement to develop interests that can be put to use when you eventually retire. Travelling and visiting friends and family are usually not sufficient to make one's later years feel useful and meaningful - you need structured activity that promotes social engagement.

Retirement can last for as much as one third of one's life so it is important to make it meaningful and fulfilling. Whether it is through a hobby that turns into a passionate activity, study for which there was never time before, or volunteering for some worthy cause, retirement should be regarded as a wonderful opportunity for personal growth and one that gives new meaning to life.

Dr. Michael Gordon is Vice-President of Medical Service at Baycrest, a professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto, and a member of the National Advisory Council on Aging.

These columns appeared in The Toronto Star in 2001 and 2002 and are reprinted with permission.