Break Free From Financial Stress

Financial stress is a sadly widespread experience. Roughly 7 in 10 people are “very stressed” about money. This is significant because financial stress is linked to health problems like depression and sleeping problems. With rising cost of gas and food, the mortgage crisis, and the unemployment rate, many Americans are feeling the crunch of financial stress. Anxiety over money can negatively affect health in several ways:

Unhealthy coping behaviors
People experiencing financial stress can be more likely to numb their anxiety by drinking, smoking, overeating and practicing other unhealthy coping behaviors.

Less money for self-care
People who are already under financial stress tend to cut corners in areas like health care to pay for basic necessities like food. Small problems can go unchecked and turn into larger problems.

Lost sleep
People often experience trouble sleeping, which can add up to a sleep deficit, impairing immune functioning and cognitive abilities, causing additional moodiness, and more.

Unhealthy emotions
Credit card debt can cause unhealthy emotions that can take a toll on health. People can experience anxiety, frustration and a sense of hopelessness as the debt piles up and increasing amounts of money are needed to just pay the interest.

Here are some ways to help you handle you financial situation and feel more in control of your life, reducing stress and helping you build toward a more secure future:
Find out where you stand. Do you have a major money problem, or is your situation relatively under control? Learn about implementing systems that can help - such as creating a budget that will fit well with your lifestyle and boost your financial success.

Work towards getting out of debt. Seek help and guidance from local debt counseling agencies such as Consumer Credit Counseling Services of Family & Community Services, Inc. located at 1433 Fifth Street NW, New Philadelphia, OH 44663. They offer budget counseling as well as a debt management program. If you are interested in the services they offer, please call 330-343-8171 for further information.

As you work on improving your financial situation, you can reduce stress by practicing stress-reducing techniques such as deep breathing exercises, progressive muscle relaxation (tensing a muscle group for ten seconds and then relaxing for ten seconds, repeating with each muscle group), music therapy, and good old fashioned physical exercise are all great inexpensive ways to help reduce stress.

~ information from About.com - Stress Management, articles by Elizabeth Scott, M.S.