Anita Clemons Swanagan spent her life working hard and giving generously. But after a sudden health crisis forced her into early retirement, she’s facing financial hardship — and wishing she’d done things differently.
Swanagan, now in her late 50s, retired at age 55 after being diagnosed with a brain tumor and suffering multiple strokes. Her health issues, including a rare hormonal disorder called acromegaly, also contributed to diabetes, high blood pressure, and constant joint pain.
Though she had health insurance, the out-of-pocket costs piled up. At one point, her medical debt topped $100,000. Paying it off wiped out most of her savings.
“Right now, I live totally on disability,” she told Business Insider in late 2024. “I wouldn’t consider myself financially stable.”
A Life of Giving, Now With Regrets
Swanagan raised three children as a single mother without ever taking government assistance. She prided herself on self-reliance, working long hours and juggling jobs in corrections, hospitals, farms, and private care to support her family.
But looking back, she wishes she’d prioritized her own financial well-being.
“There were times I worked for less than I was worth,” she said. “I never asked for more or looked for better opportunities. My salary stayed around $50,000.”
Despite tight budgets, she often lent money to friends and coworkers in need — usually a few hundred dollars at a time — thinking she was doing the right thing. Now, she says, “It adds up.”
“It’s good to care about people,” she said, “but you also have to consider what it’s costing you — mentally and financially. You only get so many years to prepare for retirement.”
Medical Crisis Changed Everything
Swanagan’s disorder, acromegaly, caused her bones — including her jaw — to enlarge, leaving her without teeth and in near-constant pain. “I have trouble walking. I’m always stiff and hurting,” she said.
Unable to work, she now lives on a piece of family farmland in Illinois, inherited from relatives who’ve owned it since 1856. When she spoke with BI, she was living in an SUV she had converted into a camper while waiting for her new tiny home to arrive.
“I have family willing to help me put the house together,” she said, “and that means a lot.”
A Message to Her Younger Self
If she could go back in time, Swanagan says she would’ve saved more, asked for better pay, and been less generous.
“There’s no perfect retirement plan,” she said. “Life throws things at you, and you can never be fully ready. But your future self is someone worth protecting too.”Tools
