Wow, as usual, my TE sisters come through in spades.

First - education - as long as I attend a state university, I go for $5/semester. I retired with full benefits. So, no debt accrual.

Social work vs mental health counseling - sadly in AZ, the only thing available is a BSW or MSW through Arizona State Univ. If I wanted to do mental health counseling, it would have to be through Univ of Phoenix and that is more money than I want to spend. A friends amassed a student loan of $60K there & came out with a masters in counseling that will take her a long time to repay. Mental health counseling with an MSW requires 2000+ hours of internship. So, I'd be looking at 3-4 years before I could be a "real" counselor & take insurance. For me, that's too long.

Returning to the University - I would take basically a droid job. Crunch the numbers or manage some small project - nothing on the scale of what I left. I don't want the hassle or responsibility because I've been there/done that. I do think a half time job would be fine and if they paid my insurance (depends on FTE) that would be even better. I WAS one of those people who liked the social interaction with my peers & can get along with just about anybody. The position I left, senior business manager, was extremely difficult due to budget cuts. I was working 60 hours/week when I finally retired. Middle management sucks. None of the authority with all of the responsibility.

Personal training has always interested me but the gyms seem to employ 20-somethings with no wrinkles. If I did PT, I'd go for ACSM because it is the gold standard and I think it can open doors. I've always wondered if a middle age overweight woman would rather have another middle age woman working with her or a young boy who may not understand physical/mental/emotional limitations.
Here is a footnote to this - I have a good friend who is a Reiki master. I always thought that Reiki + personal training would be a great combination. Especially if I learned how to transfer energy. Just a thought.

Interesting about the lawyers on the boards - I've met so many burned out lawyers that I'm glad I never went to law school. DH is a private investigator - mostly murders. People seem to think that it's similar to TV dramas & it isn't. DH is still actively working. I thought the agreement when I retired was that he would cut back too but that ain't happening anytime soon. I'm not a happy house frau. I'd rather work & pay somebody to clean my house.

I'm relieved to hear about people who also flounder in retirement. My working friends roll their eyes at me. I used to think the same thing and I do enjoy my freedom. But I would like to have a purpose. I've done lots of volunteer work and will continue, but it's not the same as a job where people expect you to be there & depend on you.