If you’re thinking of retiring, it’s a good idea to start planning for it.

It’s a big life transition with social and psychological hurdles, says Pat McCabe, a human resources specialist with master’s degrees in counseling and higher education administration.

“People who are considering stopping full-time work, and those who have actually stopped working, often worry about their finances, health and insurance, figuring out where to live,” she said in a recent interview. “This can cause stress and anxiety.”

McCabe, a University of New Hampshire human resources partner, will present an online professional development program for the University of Maine Division of Lifelong Learning’s Professional Development and Continuing Education programs. The program is titled “What’s Next? Planning Your Transition to Retirement,” and classes will be held beginning Sept. 10.

“(The program) aims to provide soon-to-be and newly retired professionals with the skills and resources needed to successfully transition into this new chapter of their lives,” according to a UMaine news release.

One difficult transition is often missing the routines of working life, “their work friends, the structure and of course the pay that working provided in their daily lives,” McCabe said. “Many miss the sense of contributing their expertise and skills, and the mental stimulation that work requires.”

The best way to cope is simple, she said: Plan ahead.

“Of course, some employees don’t get to choose when they stop working, for all kinds of reasons,” she said. But if you take the opportunity to plan what you’ll do with your time, and you have options for part-time work or volunteering or hobbies, you will have a few reasons to get going in the morning once the full-time job ends, she said.

She cited a 2017 RAND Corp. survey that found almost 40% of workers over age 65 were still working. Social Security benefits can be claimed as early as age 62, but with your benefits reduced by 25%-30%, according to investopedia.com.

In 2024, the Social Security full retirement age is 66 for those born between 1943 and 1959, and age 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later. Retirees qualify for Medicare at age 65. The site noted that according to research published by Boston College, men retire at an average age of 64.7 years, while women remain at work until age 62.1, on average.

For those who have recently taken the leap or plan to retire soon, it’s important to have a strategy, McCabe said.

“In this course, we’ll work on identifying strengths and strategies that we have used to manage past changes in our lives, and how to apply those to this transition,” she said. McCabe also will help participants highlight the most meaningful ways to spend their time.

“Since it’s likely that we will change our minds in retirement and discover that we want to try other pastimes, we’ll build strength in how we make our own choices,” she said.

McCabe said she was inspired to develop and offer this class because such courses provide a network of new friends who are going through the same process.

“Some retirees have shared with me that they feel lonely after working; others that they have to carefully navigate being home more often with their partners,” she said. “This course will be a chance to make new acquaintances outside of work and home.”

It’s also important for retirees to plan how to repurpose their strengths and skills and to live in alignment with their values, McCabe said.

“This ‘rewirement’ planning can be as important as all our earlier job searches,” she said. “This is a life skills class: how to devote some time and energy to thinking ahead of how you’ll spend your time and energy in the future.”

She said she asks everyone she meets with who is planning on retiring: “What are you going to do next?”