Financial Worries and Your Wellbeing

From time to time, we all face important financial decisions. The triggers for these are sometimes not a surprise – marriage, a first mortgage, the arrival of a newborn child, an inheritance – but occasionally something destabilising comes up that no amount of planning could have catered for – job loss, ill health, a family death.  In these sets of circumstance, a decision needs to be made that will deeply affect our financial wellbeing going forward.

The stress inherent in the decision-making process differs from person to person, but it’s usually present in some form and, if the individual’s circumstances suddenly become precarious, that stress can easily become a major concern, threatening the wellbeing of the person or people concerned.

The mental health charity MIND recently cited financial worry, poverty and debt as potential causes of at least a period of poor mental health. Worrying about money can make one’s mental health worse and poor mental health can make managing money harder. The key here is to stop this cycle turning into a downward spiral and, although many genuinely find it difficult to ask for help, the badly needed assistance is available in the form of financial advice.

No matter how far ranging the source of change is, from issues as widespread as inheritance to pension planning, redundancy to health worries, the disruption and the challenge it poses often require complete financial restructuring and the making of critical decisions. Talking to a well-trained, experienced and well-connected financial adviser can provide vital reassurance, reintroduce stability to a fraught situation and give the client confidence in the decisions being taken, thus reducing the stress inherent in the particular situation.

The link between financial concerns and individual wellbeing – or the lack of it – is now well documented. Whether one is in debt and needs the assistance available at the Citizen’s Advice Bureau or starting a pension through a Financial Adviser, talking to an expert adviser will produce clarity, comfort and achievable goals.

Whilst poor mental health problems through financial worry may not go away of their own accord, there are tried and tested ways of solving many of the problems that arise from financial woes. An important first step in dealing with this perpetuating cycle of anxiety, is to remember that you don’t have to deal with all your worries and concerns alone – there are experts available in key areas from therapists to financial advisers.

So let’s help fight the stigma together – both when it comes to the term ‘mental health’ and also our innate ‘Britishness’ when it comes to discussing money; we need to start the conversation and break the cycle.