A lot of my friends are at an age where they’ve been working for about 20 years and are starting to burn out. And I can relate, because in recent years, I’ve put in long hours in the hopes of meeting some savings goals and covering the many expenses that come with raising a family today.

Some of my friends have started to talk seriously about early retirement. And I have a few who may be in a decent position to pull it off.

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But not only is early retirement something that doesn’t appeal to me, but it’s actually something I think I’d be scared to pursue. Here are three reasons the idea of an early workforce exit makes me anxious.

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1. Running out of money

A 2024 Allianz Life survey found that 63% of Americans are more worried about running out of money than actually dying. And while I think that may be a bit extreme, the reality is that the earlier you retire, the more you risk spending down your entire nest egg in your lifetime.

Think about it. Imagine you retire with $2 million at age 65 and live until 90. That means you can spread that sum out over 25 years. If you retire at 55, that same sum will need to last 35 years. And unless you really take care to limit your withdrawals year after year, you could end up in a seriously bad spot later in life.

2. Having to put health coverage in place

Healthcare is one of the largest expenses older Americans have to cover. But retiring early could make it cost a lot more.

Fidelity says that the typical 65-year-old retiring in 2024 is looking at spending $165,000 on healthcare throughout retirement. And that’s with Medicare coverage.

Now, picture yourself retiring at age 55 and not having access to Medicare for another 10 years. Frankly, I can’t imagine what the total cost would look like there when you account for a decade of having to buy your own insurance.

And let’s face it — even if you pay thousands of dollars a year for health coverage, you’re not necessarily looking at a top-tier plan. You might end up spending thousands more on deductibles and copays on top of your premiums, thereby eating into the savings you’ll be needing to stretch longer.

3. Getting really bored really quickly

A lot of people don’t recognize the non-financial value of having a job until they’re no longer working. But the reality is that a job isn’t just a source of a paycheck. For many people, it’s an opportunity to get out of the house, socialize, and move around.

Now that doesn’t happen to be the case for me. As a full-time writer who works from home, I don’t leave the house to do my job, my socialization is limited to the occasional online exchange with an editor, and my work is as sedentary as jobs come. (Thankfully, I have two large dogs who get me up and moving during breaks.)

But what my job does for me, aside from helping to pay the bills, is give me something to do with my days. If I didn’t have a job, I’d probably get bored pretty easily — and that’s with having three kids to pick up after, cook for, and shuttle around to activities.

When I think about not having a job and also not having children under my roof, I imagine myself getting pretty restless. So I wouldn’t want to put myself in that situation any sooner than necessary.

I can certainly see the appeal of early retirement. And if it’s a big goal of yours, I’d suggest mapping out a plan for it either on your own or with the help of a financial advisor. But I also think it’s important to recognize the pitfalls of early retirement, and to make sure you have a means of working around them.

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