It can be tough to manage your finances when you have a mental illness. The symptoms of mental illness can make it difficult to stick to a budget and make responsible spending decisions.
Additionally, mental illness can lead to job loss. It can also make it even harder to save money. However, there are ways to overcome these challenges and better manage your finances despite having a mental illness.
Let’s look at what common financial struggles someone with a mental illness will face and what can be done to overcome them.
Stick to a budget
One of the most important aspects of saving money is creating and sticking to a budget. For people with mental illness, this can be difficult. Symptoms like disorganization, impulsivity, and poor concentration can make it hard to keep track of expenses and stay within a budget.
Sticking to a budget can be tricky, but there are solutions. A big one is to keep track of your expenses. Write down everything you spend in a notebook or use a budgeting app to track your spending. This will help you see where your money is going and where you can cut back.
Alternatively, if you don’t want to track everything, you can focus on big-picture items. This includes keeping track of how much you spend on rent, utilities, debt, and food.
Responsible spending decisions
Another challenge people with mental illness face is making responsible spending decisions. Symptoms like impulsivity can lead to excessive spending, while depression can cause people to lose interest in activities they once enjoyed and turn to shop as a way to cope.
If you struggle with responsible spending, you can do a few things to help. One is to avoid triggers. If you know there are certain places, things, or activities that lead to excessive spending, try to avoid them.
Another is to stick to a list. When you go shopping, make a list of what you need and stick to it. This will help you resist the urge to impulse buy.
Job loss
Job loss can be a common financial struggle for people with mental illness. Mental illness can make it difficult to maintain employment. For instance, if you have a mood disorder like depression, it can make it hard to perform well at work and keep up with the demands of a job.
You could talk to your employer about your mental illness when it comes to job loss. Many employers are understanding and may be willing to make accommodations, such as flexible hours or working from home.
You could also look for a job that’s a better fit for your needs. If your current job is too demanding or stressful, look for something less demanding. This can help you stay employed while managing your mental health.
Saving money
Saving money can be hard when you have a mental illness. Several of the things mentioned above can contribute to problems with saving money, such as poor spending decisions or job loss.
Other issues that can contribute are mental illness-related expenses, such as therapy or medication. However, there are ways to save money despite these challenges.
As previously mentioned, keeping track of your expense and avoiding triggers can help. An additional tip to consider is the 50/30/20 rule. This rule states that you should spend 50% of your income on essentials, 30% on non-essentials, and 20% on savings.
Sticking by this rule can help you focus on saving a portion of your paycheck while still emphasizing essentials like medication or therapy.
Staying hopeful
Having a mental illness is tough. It bleeds into so many parts of your life, and it hurts when it bleeds into your finances.
However, there is hope. If you sit down and seriously look at your finances, you can find solutions to several problem areas. It will take time, and it won’t be easy, but you can get your finances back on track.
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