Retiring at 35 after Divorce, No Alimony, No child support
I am ready to FIRE at 35, but it's not the conventional way.
A little backstory: I worked nonstop for years as the sole breadwinner, while my wife contributed nothing, not even emotional support. Four years in after no communication or effort from her and just feeling like an ATM, I finally left.
Divorce is now finalized and the court said no alimony, no child support(since the kid wasn't mine) this is because my only income is in SSDI, CRSC, and VA disability pay. She got a car, her stuff and that's it. Now she and the child have no place to live.
People keep telling me I'm heartless for "leaving them with nothing" but isn't the point of FIRE to secure YOUR future? Or was I supposed to work myself to death for someone who refused to meet me halfway?
I feel a little guilt (mainly because of the kid) but honestly, I busted my ass for this freedom. I feel like letting them figure it out is fair.
Now for the numbers: My SSDI is 25k, my VA pay is 45k, and CRSC is 31k for a total annual income of 101k tax-free. Also get tricare for healthcare and also dental and vision for life.
Expenses: Before the divorce our expenses were 70k/yr but that was mostly due to the ex and her kid. I would give the ex a "fun money" budget of 12k/yr because she thought it was necessary to do her hair, lashes, makeup, mani pedi, all the time. She also had her daughter in a few different activities, which also cost me 6k annually. We would also travel and had 10k/yr set aside for that, I may keep that one at that and just do more travel. But overall, I think expenses will drop to at least around 45k/yr and that's living pretty comfortably for me. I mainly hike, garden, do yoga, and enjoy cooking different dishes.
I don't plan on having any kids in the future and I've already had a vasectomy done. For now I never plan on getting married either, and if I ever do, it'll be with a pre-nup. So how feasible is my FIRE plan? Can I pull the trigger? Or is relying on government money too risky?
Posted Nov 1, 2025, 1:14 PM UTC