@Pella: a maid would be a great idea for you. With your pain, PTSD & stress levels, all that housework shouldn't also get heaped onto you. Maid services are relatively inexpensive too: some can be arranged to come in only once/wk to take care of all laundry, bed sheet changes & heavier housework. Here we have a programme for people with disabilities where a maid can come in 2x/wk & take care of the house. There's even a programme where they'll take you to get groceries or get them themselves, bring them in & put them away & prepare meals! This is costly to tax payers but infinitely less so than keeping someone in residential care & a lot more humane. My aunt would never have been able to remain in her apartment alone without such care.
A million $ wouldn't allow me to do what I really want to. Actually, neither would a million pounds. Where many people go broke quickly with a big windfall is that they forget that the large home will require a small fortune to maintain & pay the taxes & utilities on. The cars also must be insured & these are regular monthly expenses you can count on. If you spend your principal instead of living off the interest, it is akin to cutting off parts of & eating the goose that is laying golden eggs! A million may pay your debts, let you get a decent car, go on a trip or 2, update your furniture & tech toys but that's about it.
I'd want to completely retire & live a spa/resort lifestyle. They make condos like this on private beaches where your entire lifestyle is like being on vacation. Permanently! I've looked at some of these places & right now we couldn't afford it. They come with all the full services you'd expect at a 5 star resort. 24 hr maid service, your choice of dining experiences (or have room service), indoor & outdoor spa facilities like pools & jacuzzi/ hot tubs (you even have the option of having one in your unit!) With really deep pockets, you can invest in a private cabana/house on the grounds. People who do this are typically looking to live quietly & simply & to be left alone. You never have to: mow or shovel (unless you WANT to) cook or clean, go schlepping for anything, be stressed out by life...you even have access to plastic surgery on-site if that's your 'thing'. If you decide to travel for a few months, you can rent your place out & just GO. The rent will cover your fees & your trip to wherever.
I want to be able to sleep or rest when I'm tired & wake up when I'm refreshed, never have to hear an alarm or be on some schedule, never have to factor in energy & time for mundane tasks that only need to be re-done a few days later, lounge on the beach or swim without having to hop a plane & go though rigmarole to do it & have enough to help my kids out (BUT not hand them everything). I never want to HAVE to go to a grocery store. I only want to cook when I feel like it (RARE!). I like the idea of maid service when I want it & not having someone wandering around my place singing or whistling while they sweep: you call, they show up, do the job & skedaddle. Many wealthy people who are NOT of retirement age choose to live this way. There are themed places where the lifestyle revolves around hiking, rock climbing & cycling etc. or you can opt out of any activity you don't feel like doing. If the magic money fairy (or Lady Luck) drops 50-60 million on us, that's what we'd do.
Mind you...if we DID win a million $, I wouldn't say NO. I wouldn't move to a bigger house: we hope to later down-size. I would pay what's left on the mortgage, give both my kids a down-payment on a suitable place of their own, I'd move my parents into a 2 bedroom/2 bath condo of their own not far BUT not here & invest the rest carefully. I know we'd travel more too. My husband's work is his obsession & he built it from scratch so I doubt he'd stop working even if he could afford to. Even with 50 million, I could see him opening a clinic on the resort.
