Economic Anxiety or Depression

What is Economic Anxiety or Depression?

Economic anxiety refers to the state of worry or insecurity related to one’s economic anticipation. It can occur due to sudden change, such as loss of job, loss of assets, having low purchasing power leading to low quality of life. A drastic change in someone’s lifestyle causes huge mental stress and leads to economic anxiety.

Economic anxiety at a personal level is growing so rapidly that it is leading to a worldwide economic crisis.  One major economic depression occurred when in 1929 the stock market crashed. It continued until World War II when huge job opportunities were created to deal with unemployment.

What Causes Economic Anxiety:

Economic anxiety has grown to be a major issue during the pandemic in many households. The common denominator of economic crisis is sudden change. A few common causes of financial stress and anxiety are given below:

-        Loss of a job/ unemployment

-        Low-wage job

-        Lack of assets

-        Having severe health condition/illness

-        Single parenting

-        High rents

-        Increased educational costs etc.

Symptoms:

There are some common symptoms of financial anxiety that occur in most people. Some are mentioned here:

·       Obsessive saving:

In fear of getting bankrupt, people become very frugal in spending money. They compromise over the basic necessities of life. It also can stop you from spending on healthcare.

·       Overworking:

Some people start doing extra work to earn extra money. They work day and night, ignoring their mental health. This causes severe health issues that can even worsen anxiety.

·       Overspending:

This is the most common symptom of financial anxiety. People find relief in buying material items. It helps them get rid of stress caused by financial challenges. They equate purchasing with “being ok” or looking good. The opposite is true.

·       Social Distancing:

People with economic stress start isolating themselves from people. They avoid going out or hanging out with friends to save money. It makes them hopeless and they lose the charm of life, worsening the situation.

·       Abnormal Behaviors:

Money problems and stress stimulate abnormal behaviors. Some people sleep excessively to ignore this problem and others find it difficult to sleep or continuously check their bank accounts.

How to Cope with Economic Anxiety:

Money is a major concern in today’s world. Almost every person is going through some kind of stress related to financial issues. But there are ways to cope with these issues and manage them. Here are some of them:

Keep a track of your spending: Keep track of your money. Control equals a feeling of safety. Schedule your budget and plan ahead on how to spend. Focus on the basic necessities and avoid spending on useless things. Make categories of Need versus Want and stick to them.

Enlist your debt: Make a list of all the due payments, including bills, educational fees, and money you owe to people. Determine priority of payment of those debts. Try not to incur new debts. Communicate with debt holders despite your fear or anxiety. They will accept partial payments even if they don’t like it and this will prevent collections. Ask for help from organizations with utility bills. Don’t let these go until the last minute and they get shut off.

Make a household budget: Try to balance out your income and expenses by writing them on paper. Manage how to control your expenses and spend wisely. Every time this upsets you, say to yourself, “this is just temporary, and I will change things soon”.

Don’t compare your financial status: Never compare your lifestyle with those on social media. It will aggravate anxiety and instill an inferiority complex. Be grateful for all the things you have in life. Certainly avoid comparing yourself to friends or family. It is a blessing that they have things – and you will too in time. But those items do not make people as happy as they think. Having a fancy car? Great status symbol, but then you get high insurance rates and worry about it getting scratched every time you park. Be practical! Get a car you wont worry about. Then outfit the inside

Identify money spending triggers: Stay focused and identify the cues that trigger you to overspend. Does a boring day or stressful day cause you to eat out or go shopping? Once you have identified the triggers learn to manage them. Find alternatives that can help you cope with these situations like going to a library, seeing movies on the cheap and cooking at home as your normal.

Take small steps:  Don’t get really harsh on your spending but spend wisely and conserve in multiple, but small amounts also. Always take small steps. Try to avoid useless expenditures like eating out, going to the cinema, etc. Controlling these small expenses will help you save some money. Three or four degrees on your thermostat will not make that much difference in comfort, but it will impact your bills a lot. Conserve in small ways – Like fancy coffee? Me too. But paying $5-$7 dollars is not smart. I can make it better at my home for literally pennies. Convenience is great, but you will quickly find that you can have more of what you want if you make your own!

Manage your stress: In order to fight any bad situation, it is important for you to have a healthy body and mind. It is advised to manage your overall response to a stressful situation. Take care of your body, don’t skip meals, and take proper sleep. There is a lot to be said also of keeping an awareness of your thoughts that automatically pop up in your mind and refusing to think the negative ones can go a long way. Instead substitute memories that are fun and enjoyable. If you can not think of any, just create fantasies. One of my favorites is to imagine that I have won an amount of money that is substantial, - but would not change my life - on a scratch off ticket. Since it is just extra money, I like to imagine that I just imagine buying all of the nice things I want, but normally do not get for budgetary reasons.

Stay physically active: Exercise is important to keep your mental health intact. It helps to restore and strengthen your stress management capabilities. Go for a walk or a hike and spend some time in nature. It does not have to be expensive or fancy or really to cost anything at all. Most elite and Olympic athletes stay away from expensive gymnasiums where there are many distractions. Even very modest exercise is really helpful to stabilizing your mental and physical health. Think pleasant exercise like walking slowly at a forest preserve.

Try Meditation: If you are not able to control your emotional responses to certain events or have difficulty focusing on the present moment, meditation is the answer. It will help you to focus on the present and find out a solution to the problem rather than exaggerating the anxiety. Guided meditation is given away for free all over the internet. Or you can simply count down slowly from 10 taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly on the count number until you reach zero.

Try to get good sleep:  Some of the best coping that money cannot buy is sleeping well. Become your own sleep ambassador. Turn down lights an hour before sleep. Do rituals that you do every night before bed. Read a bit or listen to soft music and let it lull you to sleep for at least 7 hours. Exercise and good nutrition will help make you sleepy at night. Practice good sleep hygiene. If your room is warm, sleep with a fan on you. If it is noisy, have you tube play “rain sounds”. Make sure you have eaten a small amount of food so hunger does not wake you.  

Get Financial Help:

If you are not able to manage the economic anxiety and can’t find a way out of it, seek professional help. There are organizations that provide financial counseling. They will guide and advise you to manage your finances. The advisor can assist you in making your monthly budget and identifying the tools that will help you control extra spending. If you are employed, many companies have an EAP structure that pays for financial counselors. Call us and we can walk you though it.

Get Supportive Counseling: A good counseling professional will help you to see and actively remember the truth. This time is temporary, and you are only adjusting in the temporary. Remember that you have a job to focus on. That job is getting yourself into difference circumstances. Having support will bring stability to your life and help you remember what is important for your quality of life and motivate you to make those moves and make the best decisions for a good outcome. Contact us at: http://www.orlandparkcounselors.com