The COVID-19 pandemic has caused a million worries for all of us.

For many, those worries are financial. Some people lost their jobs. Others watched their savings dwindle. Perhaps paying your bills or meeting your family’s needs is a considerable source of anxiety for you now.

For most of us, having enough money is a sign of security. If we feel we have too little of it, we can behave irrationally. Worse, we can get in our own way, making financial decisions out of fear, avoidance, or temporary comfort.

Has anxiety changed the way you relate to money? Let’s consider what might be going on:

3 Signs Anxiety Is Adversely Affecting Your Money Management

Is Anxiety Increasing Your Impulse Purchases?

Are Amazon boxes stacked at your front door, full of items that felt good to buy at the moment but only amplify your financial worries now? You aren’t alone. Chances are, many of your neighbors feel the same.

Anxiety tends to fuel impulsive shopping. Some call it “retail therapy.” Buying and consuming feels like a way to regain control. It can become a reliable but expensive way to alleviate anxiety and emotional distress. Unfortunately, the emotional comfort is fleeting and routine spending without a plan just keeps you feeling financially unbalanced.

Is Anxiety Driving Your Overconsumption?

Anxiety is a natural response to danger. We want to feel better so we naturally seek comfort and control during uncertain times.

The toilet paper debacle that occurred early in the pandemic is a recent example of the kind of panic purchasing and hoarding that can happen when fear takes over. Many of us would have been much better served by facing our fears, tempering our reactivity, and planning our pandemic stockpiles more wisely.

Does Anxiety Lead You to Luxury Splurges? 

Right now, we’re being faced with our mortality in a very real and everyday way. We’re feeling restricted and manipulated by an unseen bully that keeps us from living life to the fullest.

If your response is to rebel, then you might be prone to luxury buying behavior. Essentially, you splurge as a way to push back and inject meaning into your life. You might find yourself saying “you only live once” as a way to justify expensive purchases and temporarily put some distance between you and reality. Of course, those purchases quickly lose their shine and their impact on your budget can weigh heavily.

How Can You Cope with Anxiety and Manage Your Money Well? 

Anxiety and financial wellbeing are often at odds. If you’re experiencing an upsetting loop of anxious spending and buyer’s remorse that keeps you emotionally and financially stuck, it’s time to make a change.

Start by dealing with your anxiety. Awareness and acceptance of the situation are good places to start. As isolation comes to an end and the world re-opens, you’ll want to be prepared and financially stable.

Use this time to focus inward.

Relief can result when you feel heard and supported, even during such challenging times. Just as the danger of the pandemic will fade, your anxiety doesn’t have to last forever either. Reach out for help. You deserve to reclaim your peace of mind and a path toward restored finances.

If you need help focusing on your feelings and processing them productively, anxiety counseling is a good way to start. Get to the root of your spending and interrupt unhelpful behaviors. Work with a qualified therapist can help you set goals and habits that serve you long after the pandemic ends.

Are you ready to regain control and feel better? Please read more about anxiety therapy and contact me soon for a confidential consultation.