Most people, at one time or another, have been nervous about money – whether it’s how to make more of it, how to save it, how to properly spend it, or how not to lose it. For some, the nervousness is beyond just a little stress – it can become debilitating anxiety.
Is this you? Have you lost sleep over your financial obligations, wondering how you’ll pay off your mortgage in time (or maybe even this month), if you’ll ever not live paycheck to paycheck, if you’ll ever rid yourself of credit card debt that just keeps mounting? Do you try to keep your financial truth from your spouse or the people you love, worrying that they’ll judge you or get angry over your current financial picture?
You are most certainly not alone. Money is a major source of anxiety for a lot of people, no matter their income bracket. The idea of money might make you feel vulnerable or scared, as though your money controls you instead of you controlling your money. For some, it’s certainly more serious than that: recent PEW research states that following the start of the pandemic, more than 14 million Americans have lost their jobs, which means that many have found themselves in the unenviable position of struggling to pay necessary bills like medical, rent and groceries.
This kind of stress can be really damaging.
When we worry about money, especially when we don’t know when or how it’s going to come in, our anxiety can increase. Our decision-making skills can decline. And we can find ourselves in a hole of stress and hopelessness that could lead to depression. And when we’re depressed, we may develop a host of symptoms – like fatigue, irritability, low self-esteem, and loss of interest in things we once loved – that make it even harder to take the necessary steps to either clamp down on spending or up the ante on making more money.
There’s actually something called debt depression. It’s when money is one of (if not the only) primary triggers for depression; it’s when depression is brought on because of the emotional stress of being in debt. Much like any other type of depression, the symptoms include what we mentioned above, including an overall poorer state of physical wellbeing.
But there’s always hope.
The first thing to do is to realize that not only can your depression be addressed, so can your money issues.
It’s about small steps.
If it’s debt that’s weighing you down, you can either contact a financial advisor or credit counselor to help you consolidate your debt into one affordable sum, or make small payments on everything, while making a larger payment on the smallest debt first. Once that debt is paid off, you can take that money you were using to pay down on that debt and put it toward the next biggest debt. And so on and so on. Before you know it (as long as you’re not adding to your debt), you’ll be debt-free.
If it’s a job you’re after, hit up every job bank, career forum, and networking event you can think of. Practice your interview skills; make a list of everything you’re good at, and get better at the things you’ve always wanted to improve. This shows future employers that you’re eager to learn, enthusiastic about new beginnings, and consistently committed to development.
Your depression requires just as much attention as your debt. Although it’s tempting to think that as soon as your debt goes away, so too would your depression, depression is a serious mental health condition – and it’s very possible that debt isn’t the only thing causing your symptoms. If you’re feeling the symptoms of depression for more than two weeks, whether it’s brought on by financial distress or not, seek the assistance of a therapist.
Note: This blog post is not intended to replace medical intervention, professional therapy, or advice from a financial advisor.