Jones has been doing coaching inside United's academy.
But he wrote for BBC Sport: "I only announced my retirement in August but I knew for a while before then that I would be finishing.
"To come to terms with that, I had to re-evaluate everything and unpick myself personally and professionally, with therapists and psychologists, to find myself.
"I've talked quite a lot recently about how that worked for me and helped me deal with the issues I faced mentally, but it's important for anyone reading this to know that the process is the same in every aspect of life, not just sport, if your circumstances change or things are not going well for you.
"For me, that meant stripping everything back to understand who I was and where I wanted to get to next in life, and then thinking about the challenges I would face to get there.
"Part of the purpose I have found is as a husband and a father, because I always wanted to be the best I could be at both for my family, but it applied to my future in football too.
"It meant going away and trying to almost rediscover what had got me to that point in my career in the first place, and thinking about what I had actually achieved, before I was able to take the next step.
"I have had some difficult times, but I am ready for anything now."