Money Matters
Money Matters
Money and Mental Health: Breaking the Taboo
Money is a major stressor that affects our mental health, yet it remains a taboo topic many avoid discussing. Dr. Shannon Matthews joins us to explore the psychological impact of financial stress and how to develop a healthier relationship with money.
• Financial stress affects everyone - even those with adequate resources worry about future economic uncertainty
• Anxiety and depression are common responses to financial stress, often manifesting in physical symptoms like disrupted sleep and poor eating habits
• "Retail therapy" does release feel-good endorphins but serves as a temporary fix to deeper issues
• Planning purchases rather than emotional spending helps maintain financial control while still enjoying occasional treats
• Childhood experiences shape our adult relationship with money through learned behaviors and attitudes
• Creating shopping lists before entering stores helps prevent impulse purchases driven by emotional needs
• News consumption can trigger financial anxiety - limit exposure to maintain perspective
• Seeking help for financial stress should be normalized just like getting treatment for physical health issues
• Surrounding yourself with financially healthy individuals helps develop better money habits
• Maintaining dignity in financial conversations by keeping the person in the "driver's seat" of their finances
If you're experiencing financial stress, don't suffer in silence. Talk to a financial counselor, mental health professional, or trusted advisor before things snowball out of control. Visit neighborsfcu.org/financial-wellness for more tools to help you build a strong financial future.
Have an idea for a show or a question for Kim? Send us a text message
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that focuses on how to use the money you have, make the money you need and save the money you want – brought to you by Neighbors Federal Credit Union.
The information, opinions, and recommendations presented in this Podcast are for general information only and any reliance on the information provided in this Podcast is done at your own risk. This Podcast should not be considered professional advice.
Welcome to Money Matters, the podcast that focuses on how to use the money you have, make the money you need and save the money you want. Now here is your host, ms Kim Chapman.
Speaker 2:Welcome to another edition of Money Matters. I'm your host, Kim Chapman. May is Mental Health Month and, as we all know, money can be a real big stressor. It can bring on financial strain. So whether it's from living paycheck to paycheck or just not really understanding how to get yourself to that next financial level. So hopefully today we can uncover some of the mysteries of money mindset because we have with us Dr Shannon Matthews. Welcome.
Speaker 3:Hi, thank you for having me today.
Speaker 2:Such an important subject. An important topic Money seems to be a taboo that people don't like to talk about, and I think it's so important, especially in this month, that we kind of talk about the issues of why money is such a taboo, why does it cause so much stress and what things we can do to kind of alleviate that. And so thank you for joining us, but tell us a little bit about you and your background.
Speaker 3:So I am Dr Shannon Matthews. I'm a full-time psychology professor at Southern University, but I also maintain a practice where I do mental health treatment for individuals who struggle with a range of psychological disorders. My organization is Psychological Wellness and Consulting, and so I pretty much do therapy pretty much every day, but I do take that one day a week, generally on Fridays, to do some self-care, because it's important if I'm extending myself day in and day out, whether it's in the classroom or doing therapy we have to take time for ourselves, because we want, when we don't care for ourselves, stress level go up and then all sorts of things just kind of get out of whack and out of balance. So today, being Friday, is my stress reliever day, so this is just a day for me to kind of pour into me. So that's just a little bit about me and kind of how my day to day work.
Speaker 2:All right, awesome. And so, like you said, love a Friday, always a good, fun day, good fun atmosphere. And so, of course, we want to still talk about money. You know money, friday people get paid and you know what is that mindset and, like I said, the mental portion of it, that stress.
Speaker 3:So I want to start off by talking about. Can you define financial stress from a psychological standpoint? Yes, I would define stress from a psychological standpoint is things happen within your body, within your mind, when our stress levels go up Right, and so people commonly can identify with stress when we talk about, like, if a student is in school, going to class is a stressor, and so when we talk about financial stress, when a person does not have adequate funds to attend to their basic necessities, it contributes to stress levels being increased, and so some of the things that people typically do is they engage in impulsive spending, and so, even though they don't have the funds to care for some of their basic necessities, they still engage in the things that will make them feel good, because when we do things like shopping and celebrating with friends, it releases endorphins and it makes us feel good. And so, even though they may not be financially astute and being able to attend to their basic necessities, sometimes people still engage in those behaviors because they want to feel good.
Speaker 2:Now you mentioned specifically definitely people that are struggling to meet those basic financial needs. Can someone that does have financial resources suffer from some type of financial stress?
Speaker 3:Yes, because it's a pool right. You know we have. Sometimes, even though, when we have the funds to make ends meet and to do the things that we need to do, we still we're still stressed about it. And especially living in this economy now, with the way things are, even though you may have money to pay your bills and even do a little shopping on the side, there's still that stress associated with do I need to put something in reserve? There's still that stress associated with do I need to put something in reserve? You know, if our market crash was going to happen, am I going to be okay? We may be okay now, but what about next week? And so there's still a level of stress associated with finances and, you know, trying to be responsible with your money, because even the most responsible person with their money sometimes can get a little impulsive with some things. They may want to do a little extra sometime.
Speaker 2:And I would almost think that it would be normal in this day and age to ask those questions that you just mentioned. You know, do I have enough saved? What's going to happen tomorrow, especially if you're tapped into the news? If you're tapped into the news, but what might be some other signs that your mental stress, or your financial stress, is having a impact on your health, on your mental health?
Speaker 3:That's a great question. A lot of people in this day and time. Anxiety and depression is one of the most common things that people experience, right? And so sometimes people may think, oh, I'm fine, I'm doing fine, everything is, everything is OK. But that's really like a defense mechanism, right, you're not really OK, and sometimes people don't recognize when they're experiencing things like depression, you know, but it can show up sleeping all the time, right, they're not engaging with their friends, they're not able to get up and do some of the most basic things that typically you or I would be able to do, like get up, take care of our hygiene, fix breakfast, get our clothes together and move on with our day.
Speaker 3:And so sometimes, when people are experiencing financial stress and their stress levels are high, it also has impact on their not only the mental health but the physical health. Blood pressure gets out of control, eating habits get out of control, and one of the things that people will do is if, in the South, we like to eat. Of course we do. We love food and unfortunately, a lot of our food is not always the best for us, and so it's quick to just go run to McDonald's or to run to Popeye's or, you know, overindulge in a large meal and it's not the most healthy option for us. So if we're eating unhealthy, we're not sleeping because we're stressed out, we're exhibiting signs of depression that we don't always notice is going to have an impact on our overall well-being.
Speaker 2:So we have a lot of consumers that, of course, that are facing some type of financial hardship, and so they feel ashamed, sometimes even paralyzed by their financial situation, and sometimes they won't reach out for help until maybe it's too late or the consequences are really really dire. Why does money have that type of impact? Emotional impact on individuals.
Speaker 3:Oh, because I mean, we need money to make to, to sustain our way of lives, even if we're not rich or wealthy.
Speaker 3:Right, everybody needs money to be able to make that, especially if you have children. You want to be able to take care of your children, you want to be able to give them not only provide for their basic necessities, but also be able to give a little extra some time. And so, like I said, like I mentioned a little earlier, when we do things like when we're spending money, when we're shopping, those things make us feel good, and if you can't feel good, you can't make the other, the people around you, feel good. It weighs on you and it has a heavy impact on you. So it becomes emotional because your basic needs are not being met. And if you think about Maslow's hierarchy of need, you know the most basic level is being able to provide for your food, clothing, shelf, shelter and safety, and we need money to do all of those things. And so if you don't have the money to pay your rent, to buy food or some of those other necessities, it can be rather embarrassing.
Speaker 2:So on a long-term basis, what impact impact does long term financial stress have on your overall well-being?
Speaker 3:Oh, that's a good question. So I would say probably the most. One of the most impactful is definitely going to be on your physical and mental health. When your mental health is struggling, so will your physical health, because people can get into bouts of depression. Sometimes you have situational depression, where certain things may make you sad, right. But if you're in a situation where finances you're strapped for cash all the time, it's going to have a long term impact on your mental and because you're not mentally balanced and well, you're not going to be able to attend to some of the physical things. Are you going to go to the doctor and get your checkups? Are you going to be able to afford to buy healthy options? Shop the perimeter of the grocery store instead of buying the processed stuff in the middle of the aisle? You're not going to be able to make those healthy choices because you're trying to get the basics, you're trying to make ends meet and just get whatever it is that you can, and so that wears on a person mentally and physically.
Speaker 2:So I imagine you see clients for an array of different reasons. How much of an impact does finances have in terms of, maybe, their particular situation or even relationships?
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, so you often. I often come across individuals, especially married couples. You'll have one person, one of the spouses, that's in therapy for individual issues that they may be having, but throughout the course of our time together it comes up finances, the whole, his money and my money and she's not carrying her weight and she's not doing this. And so one of the most common things I see is you know, they're not on the same page with how the money should be utilized. They're not on the same page with using, seeing money as a resource for the family and pulling the money together. You're going to always do better. It is my, my thought that you're always going to do better. If it's two people, if you join it together, you do be able to do more than saying okay, kim, this is your money, shannon, this is your money you, you you're gonna pay the light bill in the water bill, I'm gonna pay the rent and whatever other bill.
Speaker 2:And so the arguments come because they're not on the same page, and so it impacts the relationships, it's the couples, because there are times when you can feel the tension in the room, and I remember there was always a saying that opposites attract, but seeing what I've seen, I feel like not when it comes to finances, because, yes, when you're on debt, when you're on opposite pages with your finances and whatnot. And so when we're talking about money, I have to ask this particular question, because there's this term that we like to throw around loosely retail therapy. Is there really any science? Or, in your opinion, what do you think about retail therapy? I'm having a bad day, I'm just, I just don't everything. I need a win, and could shopping or retail therapy really release those endorphins? Or is it really just a temporary fix, because if I'm not financially stable, it's going to be worse in the long run?
Speaker 3:I think it's both, because it can release those endorphins that make you make you feel good Right, but it is a bandaid to what could potentially be a long term problem. I would like to think I'm very responsibly with my money, I'm very fiscally responsible, and even I engage in a little retail therapy, but I try to make sure that I'm not I'm not, I'm not emotionally spending. So one way to combat that is plan it out. So you know what? Next Friday I'm going to go shopping for a few items, so that you don't overdo it.
Speaker 3:One of the biggest mistakes that we can make is emotionally shop and people say, oh, it's going to make me feel good, yeah, but then next week you're going to be strapped for cash because we didn't plan it out, we didn't think this thing, think this through. You're going to be in the same situation next week, if not worse than you are this week. It's going to only provide a temporary fix to a long-term problem. And so what I would? What I like to do? I like to go to Ulta, right, and get some skincare products, get some lip gloss, maybe some mascara. I like to do those things, but I plan it out and I treat myself, and so to me, it allows me to make sacrifices in different areas. So maybe I don't go to Starbucks every day this week, if I know I want to go to Ulta and get some new mascara next week. So there's ways to still engage in those things that make you feel good, but just do it in a more responsible way.
Speaker 2:Are there particular red flags that a person should be aware of?
Speaker 3:that suggests that you're emotionally spending. If you're, yes, if your emotions are dysregulated so meaning, if you're upset about something, if you're angry about something, if you're angry about something, if you're frustrated about something, that's not the time to go plan a shopping trip, it just is. It's the same thing as where people tell you don't go grocery shopping when you're hungry.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 3:Do not go to the grocery store when you're hungry. Well, the same applies when your retail therapy, for your retail therapy days. Don't don't plan it out or don't do it when you're in an emotional state. That's a little dysregulated.
Speaker 2:Now, if you're on a first name basis with the Amazon guy, ups and FedEx, should there be a concern? Should we be scheduling an appointment?
Speaker 3:We should, because they probably shouldn't know your name, but my husband likes to tell me that he's convinced an Amazon shopper I mean the Amazon delivery guys and females. They know my name and I'm like they do not. He was like but they come here regularly. I'm like but it's all planned out and it's you know things that I need as a necessity. It's convenient, right, and see the thing I don't like shopping. So being able to order things online is very, very convenient and easy.
Speaker 2:That's what I tell myself, and I'm glad you validated my feelings.
Speaker 3:Yes, it's very easy and it's very, very convenient, but you still have to have some self-control. I'm not just ordering on Amazon and doing all of this stuff just to be doing it For me. I have to have a purpose to do it. So, for instance, I have a birthday coming up.
Speaker 3:Happy early birthday, thank you. I appreciate that. I have a birthday coming up and we're going to have a get together at the house, so there's some things that I needed, right and so, because I don't like going to the stores and I don't like shopping, shopping online is like the perfect thing for me, intentional, yes, and so I still make a list out before I even go on, open up any apps to do any shopping, and that keeps me focused on going on there. Shannon, get what you need to get and close the app out and go about your business. Don't just be surfing like, oh, this is neat, I can just buy this. So you still have to be responsible, even when you're engaging in the most convenient things like Amazon or shopping on Walmart and things like that.
Speaker 2:And I have to ask with all the news talking about the tariffs and the impact it's going to have on retailers like Amazon, t-mobile, sheen, and so you have individuals that may be shopping on a regular basis. Whether it's for a good reason or not, obviously the expenses it sounds like it's going to have an impact. So what maybe recommendations might you give somebody on how to handle, is like if you're used to shopping on Amazon at will when it's your birthday, when it's a special occasion, and now, maybe because of the tariffs, you might not be able to do, what would you recommend to that person in terms of how to handle that situation so that you don't become depressed, so that you're not feeling financially stressed Because it's not necessarily something that the consumer has actually done? Right, that's correct.
Speaker 3:Planning, planning, planning Right, and also being more intentional about when you're opening up the app. What are you doing? Asking yourself what are you doing?
Speaker 3:That's the question Is this something you really need? Because you're not going to have? You may not have a therapist to tap you on the shoulder hey girl, do you really need to be doing that? Or you may not have a friend to be there with you in that moment. So it's really going to take some self-control right and some reminders, like with some of my clients who struggle with self-image or self-esteem issues or anything like that.
Speaker 3:We do this thing where we do, you know, positive affirmations in a mirror. So I'll have them do things like write something, get a dry erase marker and write a positive message on a mirror, or use sticky notes and put it in common areas to remind you of certain things. So I have a good friend of mine named Tamika. She came up with this with this term I am enough or you are enough. Your greatness is enough. Whatever you want to insert, there is enough.
Speaker 3:And so you know, I encourage clients to write messages to themselves on the mirror as a reminder. You can do the same thing. It can be something as simple as I don't need anything from from Amazon today and stick that on your mirror as a positive reminder that, hey, you can get control of this. Doing things like that is going to keep you from I'm not going to say it's going to keep you from being depressed, because there's some other issues that's contributing, some deeper issues that are probably contributing to the depression, and the action is you going out there shopping, right, but it can help with as a reminder for you not to engage in it when you don't need it.
Speaker 2:So when you said deeper issues, it made me think about childhood trauma or just your upbringing. What impact does, though you know as upbringing or a trauma that we may have experienced, impact how we handle money?
Speaker 3:Because where do we learn how to handle money? I know, when I was a little girl, my parents taught me the importance of saving my money. Right, you have to save your money. We didn't get into a whole lot about investment, but I did get a good foundation about saving my money and making sure that my making sure my credit was good. So by the time I got off out of high school and got on to college, I had some basics right. I kind of knew, you know, what I needed to do to kind of survive everything. From that point I got it on my own.
Speaker 3:But experiencing childhood trauma has an impact on the physical, on the on the emotional, on the mental, and it's ultimately going to shape your relationship with money. And it's ultimately going to shape your relationship with money. If you grew up in poverty and didn't have parents to educate you on how to have a good relationship with money and to be fiscally responsible, then when you become an adult those same practices are carried on until you interact with somebody else who can kind of teach you differently. So finances, child abuse and neglect all of those type of issues will impact you as an adult.
Speaker 2:So what are some small impactful steps someone can take to reduce that mental load? Because money impacts us every day, everywhere. It's not going anyplace. So what can we do to reduce that stress that we're putting on ourselves.
Speaker 3:So let's take grocery shopping. Since we're in shopping, we're talking about shopping.
Speaker 2:And be politically correct and say make groceries because we're in Louisiana, because we make groceries.
Speaker 3:We don't go shop, we make groceries down here y'all. So when you go into the grocery store, before you go to the grocery store, make a list. That's one of the most you know, the most elementary and simple things that sometimes people because some of you be surprised the amount of people that don't know how to grocery shop they go in there and they just see all of the colors. You know you got the music playing in a grocery store. You got all of this stuff to buy. It really overly stimulates a lot of people when they go in and then they just start grabbing things. Right. But if you know that your finances you got to make that dollar holler or you got to make that penny stretch make a list before you go in there and really think about buying things that you need and not focus in on the things that you want.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that little, that handbag is cute, but do you really need that handbag? If it's something that you want, plan for it and then you can still get it, but it just have to come at a later date. So delaying immediate gratification and immediate need of things is also gonna help. We live in a society where everybody want everything right now I want. In a society where everybody want everything right now, I want it right now. I want it right now. We have to learn to delay the things that we want, sometimes, especially when our finances don't allow for us to just get it right now, right now.
Speaker 2:So what would you say to that individual? Just yesterday I was having a conversation about money and somebody posed the question. You know they were being facetious. It conversation about money and somebody posed the question. You know they would be in for seizures. It's like, but I deserve it, I'm entitled, I work hard. So how do you tell that person that feels that way? But they need to rein in their finances or it's having a toll on their mental health? What do we say to that person?
Speaker 3:And so if I had that person in front of me, I would probably start off the conversation with where they learned their habits with money, from how they learned to have that relationship with money, and start unlearning those thoughts and start shifting that behavior. You do deserve we deserve nice things, but there is a way to get it without having you have such a big impact on your finances. And so it's not an easy fix, because you're changing a person's way of thinking and you change in a way that they've done. They've done the same thing over and over for many, many years, and so it's not going to happen overnight. But I would definitely start there with them about how they learn their money habits and what it means to them to think the way they're thinking now. And if they continue to think that way, how is that going to impact them long term versus if you shift the way you think and the impact that that can have on you long term?
Speaker 2:the impact that that can have on you long term, and we have some people that we consider avoiders. They just avoid money, money conversations, balancing their, their, their finances at all costs. What can we tell an individual that's an avoider? What? What steps can they take to kind of get themselves to have a different mindset in terms of it's not going to be the worst thing in the world If I look at my bank balance, if I handle my finances?
Speaker 3:Identify the why. Why are you thinking like this? Why don't you want to address your finances? What are you afraid of? And start talking and start breaking down? Why is it so scary, you know? Why can't you have that conversation about money? Why can't you, you know, buy a book?
Speaker 3:I learned how to balance my bills using, I remember when I was a little girl, my mom had this notebook and she used to write all of the bills down, how much it costs when she paid it, and that's how I learned how to pay it. And we talked about before, when we were, you know, traumas and the things that we experienced when we were little and how that impacts us as an adult. That's one of the things that had an impact on me, and I still do, as an adult Now. Yes, we have automatic drafts and all of that kind of stuff, but for me, I still got to go to my little book and still make sure that this one was paid, and it was paid at this time, right. So it's really going to be about changing behaviors, changing their way of thinking about money.
Speaker 2:So what are some habits that somebody might have financial habits that is really having an impact on their mental stability that are red flags and that they might need to actually seek therapy.
Speaker 3:That are red flags and that they might need to actually seek therapy. When an Amazon man come into your house every day or every other day and it's you have boxes in your house that you haven't even opened yet. So if you have, by the end of the week you got like three, four boxes sitting on a counter and you hadn't even opened them yet. Did you really need it? Did you really need it when, if payday is today and tomorrow you have a delivery, or tomorrow you're in the mall, or tomorrow you're like, oh my God, I spent too much. You know that's probably an indication that you know you probably need to seek some help. When you're planning to spend the money before you have it in hand, then that's a time when you need to seek some help.
Speaker 2:So the news which is rarely ever good news it can really create a lot of anxiety. I mean, you hear about the tariffs, you hear about inflation. Of course, now it's student loans. Now they're going to start garnishing your pay. If, if you're in default, everything is, you know, the stock market is going down, how can you stay focused and balanced and not create your own self anxiety and create a problem that maybe doesn't even exist? But if you're watching the news, you can't help but see this is wrong, this is wrong. This is wrong. This is wrong.
Speaker 3:You know I call anxiety. I tell clients anxiety. You feel you're tripping, you trip in and and and got your your stress level high about something that hasn't even happened yet. And that's what anxiety is and unfortunately, our our news is it breeds anxiety, higher levels of anxiety, because it's pushing stuff down your throat right and it has throat right and it has us worried and it has us stressed about what the things that could potentially happen. One of the ways I balance that is I minimize. I watch the news just enough to stay in tuned with what's going on in the country, but I'm not sitting there watching it every day, because even the most skilled person, even the most balanced person, can get sucked into trauma. It can get sucked into the negative if you put it in your face all the time, just like words of affirmation works to help pull us out of dark places. Sometimes the dark can pull you into it if you're hearing it all the time. Remember when COVID happened and everybody was buying up the toilet tissue.
Speaker 2:Yes, toilet tissue and Lysol.
Speaker 3:Toilet tissue and Lysol. You could not find a roll of toilet tissue or a can of Lysol on a shelf, and then, if you did, you're paying $10 for a can of Lysol. Paying $10 for a can of Lysol. That hysteria and that anxiety was created by the news we're going to run out of toilet tissue. Everybody got to go buy all of the toilet tissue, right? And so I found myself like, oh goodness, like wait, do we have to do? We need to get more toilet tissue? Do we need to go out? And I had to often tell myself get what we need, Right, but don't overspend. We're not going to spend a whole paycheck on buying up all the toilet tissue. So we really have to just remind ourselves not to get sucked into it. Watch the news, but don't watch it every single day, all day.
Speaker 2:Got to take a break. Got to take a break from it.
Speaker 3:Too much of anything is not going to be good for you, including the news.
Speaker 2:So having conversations about money for some individuals can be really, really difficult. Sometimes they get on the defensive. Or their trigger words right Words that if you're going to have that conversation with somebody and you know it's not going to be an easy conversation or they're trigger words that maybe somebody should avoid having, or language they should avoid using when we're talking about money.
Speaker 3:So I will start with asking the person you know if, especially if you're, like, in a financial counseling role or even if you're a friend and you're just kind of having casual conversation, right, you know you and I are sitting here and we're talking about money, right, One of the things people are sensitive about is, like I'm not going to ask you, hey, how much money you make, how often you get paid. Now, if we're in a conversation and you're trying to help me with balancing my finances, then I think a good starting point would be how can I help you? When you think about your finances, where do you see that you need help? You always want to keep the person in a driver's seat, right, you don't know more about me than I know about myself. And so, even when I'm with my clients, I tell them I approach therapy from the perspective of I'm your cheerleader, right, I'm your co clients.
Speaker 3:I tell them I approach therapy from the perspective of I'm your, I'm your cheerleader, right, I'm your co-pilot. You stay in a driver's seat and I'm going to help you navigate. Right, I'm going to give you what you need. And then there are going to be times where, if I see we're driving on a road, we just we going out a little mirror way, but if I see you about to fall into a pothole and be like, hey, kim, you might want to steer a little left. We don't want to go there because this is what's going to happen. But you keep the person in the driver's seat so that they can still remain a sense of control. We want to maintain a person's dignity at all times, and you know, being financially strapped for cash can be embarrassing. That's not something that you want to talk about if you're struggling to make ends meet, and so one of the ways that I think can be most beneficial is to keep that person in a driver's seat to remain some dignity, so that they can maintain some dignity.
Speaker 2:So can you define, maybe, what a healthy relationship with money looks like, or what are some characteristics or tips or tools that somebody should focus on if they want to make sure that they are either establishing or maintaining a healthy relationship with money?
Speaker 3:So, if you don't know, ask you know. If, if it's something that I want to learn more about, connect with people who know more than you do, so that way you can increase your knowledge. If you know you have a poor relationship with money but you know somebody else who have a better relationship with money, start encouraging conversations with that person. Ask some questions about, well, how do you do it? Make a budget and try to stick to your budget. Don't beat yourself up if you fall off the wagon a little bit right?
Speaker 2:I think that is so important?
Speaker 3:It's very important because we all fall off and you just got to get back on and get back on track. How many times have we said I need to lose some weight, I'm going to start going to the gym, I need to eat better, I need to stay out of Ulta.
Speaker 3:We start, we stop, but we start to get back on there and also surrounding yourself with people who want who who's going in a direction that you're desiring to go Right. So, if you want to do better with money, if you want to have a better relationship with money, if you want to learn more with money, surround yourself with people who have that same thought process or who's actually doing it, so that you can learn something from them.
Speaker 2:All right, this is some good information. Any final tips that you want to share with anybody, especially in light of, maybe in mental health month, month in, relate in terms of money.
Speaker 3:So don't be embarrassed. We all have had times where we needed a little boost or we needed some help. Some people are more financially secure and others than others. But it doesn't make those who are not financially secure it doesn't make them any less of a person. If you're struggling, or think you may be struggling, with any type of mental health disorder where it's anxiety, where it's depression or any of the other mental health diagnosis, don't be afraid to get to get help.
Speaker 3:Mental health has such a stigma and interrupts people wanting to get help. They don't want to go to the mental health clinic and they don't want nobody to know that they may have schizophrenia. They don't want nobody to know that they're struggling with anxiety. And it's OK when we when you break a leg Right, If you get a cold, a flu or anything else, we run to the doctor. We go run to the doctor and nobody seems to have a problem with that. It's normal to go to the doctor if your arm is hurting right. Let's normalize. Go and see clinical social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, licensed professional counselors to take care of our mental health as well as just like we take care of our physical health.
Speaker 2:Well, good information. Thank you so much, Dr Shannon Matthews, for stopping by the podcast and sharing that information so that we can build a better, stronger, healthier relationship with our money. Thank you for having me.
Speaker 1:It's time for Blueprint Building Blocks Small changes that lead to big financial wins. Let's stack up for success Track the triggers.
Speaker 2:Identify what specific financial stressors, like debt bills or even irregular income, are affecting your mental health. Awareness is the first step toward taking control. Budget with boundaries. Create a realistic spending plan that reflects your priorities, not your pressure. A budget should reduce anxiety, not add to it. Don't suffer in silence. Financial stress is common and you're not alone. Talk to a financial counselor, mental health professional or a trusted advisor before things snowball out of control.
Speaker 1:That's a wrap on today's Blueprint Building Blocks. Stay on track with your financial journey. Subscribe to the Money Matters podcast and visit neighborsfcuorg slash financial wellness for more tools to help you build a strong financial future.
