I'm materially as independent as it gets. I've always had a steady job in the public sector (science education and research)......it's always been something of a knife-edge because for 2 pins I'd leave....I don't cope well with being expected to do stuff according to somebody else's prescription, or having to work with people who get up my nose, and I always feel I'm letting myself (and society) down if I'm doing something of no real social worth just for the money. All in all, it's been an expensive trade-off for me - I get more than enough money to survive, in return for giving away half of my waking life to somebody else. I'm sure I'll retire early (probably at 60, almost certainly before 62, and definitely no later than 65), but I won't take the plunge until I'm pretty sure that I have enough savings to keep me afloat until my pension kicks in.
I don't get many issues with independent living - the interior of my house looks a bit odd, but it's not filthy and I've proved myself quite capable of keeping myself in good health and reasonably well-dressed - I might look a little bohemian or eccentric, but that's not a bad thing. I'm a good timekeeper. I should probably do something to ensure the structure of the house doesn't deteriorate - been procrastinating over that for years because I don't trust the advice of builders - but I'll probably sort something out before the place falls down, and anyhow, it's insured against collapsing. The bills get paid - sometimes rather late, but nothing really worrying, and the money's always there because I live pretty frugally and wouldn't dream of spending more than half my income.
So yes I'm doing fine, though I'll still count my life as being a largely wasted one if I don't get out of this day job, and if I don't start doing better at alleviating my loneliness. And things might get a lot worse if my health doesn't remain good - I've no idea how people with serious health issues get along in life. While you're healthy, it doesn't matter that you can't get your GP or social security people to help you.