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This week in our Retire with Money Facebook group, members discussed the interesting question of whether expenses stay fixed or go down in retirement. One member wrote, "My cynical side feels like the entire financial services industry encourages over-saving for 'someday.'" He said this is maybe because some advisors charge an annual fee based on a percentage of assets under management, so the more money the client has saved, the more the advisor makes.

One member who is seven years into retirement responded: "About saving for "some day," my grandfather died at 69. My dad figured he'd live to about 70 and planned accordingly. Instead he lived to be 83. My own goal is to be able to live independently - financially at least - to 100. Just to be on the safe side."

Another member said, "My mother-in-law lives in a senior community now. I am a state ombud for WA state in senior living facilities, so I see lots of them. I can tell you that if you live long enough, you will need care and it is expensive - way more than you think it will or should cost. The cheap places or, heaven-forbid, the places that take Medicaid, are not the way you want to live at the end of your life."

I've heard a lot of financial advisors say that your expenses generally stay the same in retirement as when you're working. You spend less on commuting and work clothes, but you make up for that in the early years of retirement with more leisure spending. Then, you start to slow down and your health care spending ratchets up. Even if you live frugally, it's hard to escape rising health and long-term care costs.

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Elizabeth O'Brien is deputy editor at MONEY. She has covered retirement and health care for nearly a decade. A Brooklyn resident and mom of two boys, she navigates the alphabet soup of Medicare and the New York City subway system with equal ease. You can email her at elizabeth.obrien@money.com and follow her on Twitter at @elizobrien.