Momentum Metropolitan\u2019s Consumer Financial Education Specialist, Claire Klassen discusses the impact poor mental health can have on your relationship with money.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They say money can\u2019t buy you happiness. But does happiness (or at the very least, a sound mind) help prevent poor financial decisions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The influence that financial hardship has on one\u2019s stress levels is well-documented. A research paper published last year found that financial worries were associated with higher psychological distress, while the link between money troubles and psychological stress was stronger among those with a greater financial burden, such as the unemployed, unmarried or those from lower-income households. Moreover, the annual Money Stress Tracker found that 78% of South Africans were experiencing stress as a result of money issues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Financial worries cause us a great deal of distress, that much is clear. But what about the other way round? What impact can conditions such as depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have on the way we relate to and manage our money?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sadly, mental illness is all-too-prevalent in South Africa. Klassen says South Africa struggles with its collective mental health, citing Sapien Labs\u2019 Annual Mental State of the World Report, which found the country to be one of the worst in the world when it came to the mental well-being of its people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSouth Africa only spends 5% of its total health budget on mental health \u2013 putting South Africa at the bottom of international benchmarks of country public spending on mental health. This translates into less than 1 person per 10 receiving mental health care. Poor South Africans are worse off when it comes to access to mental care \u2013 because of the lack of capacity, accessibility and resources in the public health sector for mental health care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFinancial and mental health are interconnected, she says, \u201cand when someone is struggling in either area, it can perpetuate a vicious cycle, which goes something like this: Poor mental health leads to poor financial decisions. These poor decisions, in turn, lead to money issues such as debt. Worrying over these money issues then knocks one\u2019s mental wellbeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGood mental health means that you are focused and sure about the decisions you make for yourself, your career, your family and your finances. By that same token, when you do not have a clear mindset or a positive mental state, you are more likely to fall victim to poor money decisions that will derail the plans you might have set for yourself when you were in a better frame of mind,\u201d says Klassen. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Klassen shares how mental illnesses might influence your relationship with money:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It changes the way you relate to money \u2013 mental illness impacts every facet of life, including your relationship with money. It is far harder to draw up or stick to a budget when you\u2019re struggling mentally, or to retain the discipline you need to keep your financial plans on track. Your ability to make financial decisions could be compromised or the way you normally spend money might shift, leading to traits such as impulse buying. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Depression often makes everything feel pointless \u2013 including financial goals \u2013 while conditions such as anxiety can lead to avoidance behaviours, such as struggling to deal with bills.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An article by the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute stated that: \u201cwhile unwell six in ten (63%) people found it harder to make financial decisions, 42% put off paying bills and 38% took out a loan they would not otherwise have taken out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It impacts performance at work \u2013 mental health issues may lead to increased absenteeism or presenteeism, and performance at work could suffer. This, in turn, often impacts earnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the United Kingdom, the income gap between those with mental illnesses such as anxiety and depression and those who don\u2019t equate to an average gross annual income difference of around GBP 8 400, while less than half of those living with mental health issues were employed, compared to the four out of five people who didn\u2019t suffer from these problems. Moreover, when employed, those with poor mental health were more likely to occupy lower-paying roles. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, Klassen says that establishing solid good financial habits will stand you in good stead when you go through a period which sees you struggling mentally. \u201cWhen sound financial practices are engrained in us, we tend to continue these come rain or shine, which reduces the potential for further financial stress caused as a result of bad money decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She suggests the following practices to safeguard your money when you are struggling mentally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Automating savings \u2013 by automating your retirement contributions or emergency fund savings you make it harder for indecision or doubt to creep in, reducing the temptation to make reckless decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Spend thoughtfully; while it is important to avoid spending carelessly and landing yourself in debt when you\u2019re struggling mentally that doesn\u2019t mean you shouldn\u2019t spend money (with careful consideration) on things that bring you joy and some mental relief. This could be a good book or an outing with a friend, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Limit your exposure to social media and online advertising \u2013 when you\u2019re going through a rough time mentally, social media, especially \u201cdoom scrolling\u201d, often makes you feel even worse, while influencers \u2013 and the barrage of online advertising \u2013 may convince you to splash out on items you don\u2019t need. This will give you a momentary dopamine rush, before leaving you feeling worse than before. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Reach out to a financial adviser; they will guide you when you are struggling to make decisions or prevent you from making poor ones, ensuring your finances remain in good order during times of stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf you are suffering mentally, it\u2019s important to get professional psychological help. Numerous organisations are out there, such as SADAG, to help. There are also steps you can take that will help you not to let the challenges you are facing now sabotage your future financial well-being.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Momentum Metropolitan\u2019s Consumer Financial Education Specialist, Claire Klassen discusses the impact poor mental health can have on your relationship with money.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":20,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_linkdex":"","_yoast_wpseo_content_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_inclusive_language_score":"","_yoast_wpseo_is_cornerstone":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_opengraph-image-id":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-title":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-description":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image":"","_yoast_wpseo_twitter-image-id":"","newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","_crsspst_to_novanewscoza":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozabloemnewsexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozacityvision":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozadistrictmailhelderberg":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaeikestadnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozahermanustimes":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakomani-karoo":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozakougaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozamthathaexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozanoordkaapbulletin":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozapeoplespost":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaswartlandgazette":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozatygerburger":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaudexpress":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavistanews":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozavrystaatkroon":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweskusnuus":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaweslander":false,"_crsspst_to_novanewscozaworcesterstandard":false,"_EventAllDay":"","_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":"","_EventShowMapLink":"","_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":"","_EventVenueID":"","_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":"","_VenueShowMapLink":"","_application":"","_batch_id":"","_company_name":"","_company_tagline":"","_company_twitter":"","_company_video":"","_company_website":"","_custom_id":"54859331-ee45-40e1-a878-857734fc4997","_EventDuration":"","_EventOrigin":"","_EventTimezoneAbbr":"","_featured":"","_filled":"","_job_expires":"","_job_location":"","_media_credit":"","_media_credit_url":"","_menu_item_menu_item_parent":"","_menu_item_object":"","_menu_item_object_id":"","_menu_item_target":"","_menu_item_type":"","_menu_item_url":"","_menu_item_xfn":"","_navis_media_can_distribute":"","_navis_media_credit_org":"","_OrganizerOrigin":"","_provider":"","_pum_built_in":"","_pum_default_theme":"","_pum_form_conversion_count":"","_remote_id":"","_remote_name":"","_remote_position":"","_report_frequency":"","_report_reference_dates":"","_send_attempts":"","_site_id":"","_sitemap_exclude":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","_sitemap_priority":"","_source_url":"","_subscription_period":"","_subscription_period_interval":"","_subscription_price":"","_tec_slr_enabled":"","_tec_slr_layout":"","_template_type":"","_ticket_end_date":"","_ticket_start_date":"","_tribe_aggregator_allow_multiple_organizers":"","_tribe_aggregator_content_type":"","_tribe_aggregator_file":"","_tribe_aggregator_finalized":"","_tribe_aggregator_hash":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_id":"","_tribe_aggregator_import_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_interactive":"","_tribe_aggregator_origin":"","_tribe_aggregator_post_status":"","_tribe_aggregator_preview":"","_tribe_aggregator_source_name":"","_tribe_aggregator_type":"","_tribe_default_ticket_provider":"","_tribe_hide_attendees_list":"","_tribe_rsvp_for_event":"","_tribe_ticket_capacity":"","_tribe_ticket_header":"","_tribe_ticket_show_description":"","_tribe_ticket_show_not_going":"","_tribe_ticket_version":"","_type":"","_VenueOrigin":"","_wp_attachment_context":"","_wp_attachment_image_alt":"","_wp_font_face_file":"","_wp_old_date":"","_yoast_wpseo_estimated-reading-time-minutes":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskeywords":"","_yoast_wpseo_focuskw_text_input":"","_yoast_wpseo_keywordsynonyms":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_block-catalog":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_job_listing_type":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_nova_retailer":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_publication":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_tribe_events_cat":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-duration":"","_yoast_wpseo_videositemap-rating":"","_menu_item_classes":[],"_tribe_modified_fields":[],"_wp_attachment_backup_sizes":[],"_wp_suggested_privacy_policy_content":[],"_yoast_post_redirect_info":[],"_yoast_wpseo_video_meta":[],"activation_date":"","archive_insertion_is_repeating":"","archive_insertion_posts_count":"","article_feature_media":"","article_feature_type":"","article_main_image_caption":"","article_media_icon":"","article_template":"","author_byline":"","background_color":"","block_editor":"","byline":"","cmplz_hide_cookiebanner":"","competition_end_date":"","contact_advertise_email":"","contact_advertise_phone":"","contact_editorial_email":"","contact_general_email":"","contact_general_phone":"","contact_office_hours":"","contact_physical_address":"","enabled":"","featured_image_custom_caption":"","featured_video_url":"","fields":"","font_body":"","font_header":"","frequency":"","headline":"","hide_border":"","icon":"","is_wp_suggestion":"","issuu_download_url":"","issuu_embed_url":"","language_version_url":"","large_border":"","name":"","nm_contact_name":"","nm_contact_number":"","nm_date_lost":"","no_overlay_background":"","node-url":"","obituary_born_date":"","obituary_died_date":"","obituary_memoriam_text":"","origin":"","overlay_color":"","overlay_opacity":"","overlay_size":"","placement":"","plural_label":"","post_author":"","post_id":"","post_language":"en","secret-key":"","sponsored_utm_campaign":"","sponsored_utm_content":"","sponsored_utm_medium":"","sponsored_utm_source":"","sponsored_utm_term":"","start_date":"","utm_suppression":"","video_embed_url":"","wp_pattern_sync_status":"","data_version":[],"enclosure":[],"pongrass_image":[],"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_newspack_byline_active":false,"_newspack_byline":"","newspack_content_restriction_is_exempt":false,"scaip_prevent_shortcode_addition":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[67],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"publication":[],"class_list":["post-50802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\n