Jasmine Birtles
Your money-making expert. Financial journalist, TV and radio personality.
Tackling Debt Overwhelm: How Treating Your Mental Health Can Help
Annie
9th Sep 2024
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Debt is always a highly stressful situation to be in – whether you owe a fiver to your mate down the pub, or thousands of pounds on a credit card you can’t repay. Almost everyone faces debt at some time in their lives, and it can be seriously detrimental to your mental health. As the stress increases, so your mental health can worsen – and that can lead to poor financial choices or more debt. This guide will help you tackle debt by taking steps to improve your mental wellbeing.
Gambling Debt and Mental Health
Spending as a Symptom
Do you sometimes get yourself something ‘as a little treat’, even though you know you can’t really afford it? The momentary joy of buying something to cheer you up is quickly replaced by negative feelings of guilt and shame, plus worry that you’ve added to your debt. And when you feel bad about it… you might buy something else.
This is a really common cycle that many people don’t talk about. The dopamine hit we get from the process of buying something to make ourselves feel better lasts only a fleeting moment, but that cost on your credit card lasts a lot longer.
Spending when we’re in debt can also be a symptom of other problems that you’re not facing up to. The ‘in the present’ moment of making a purchase can make us feel better, but it can also be that you’re not facing more deep-seated problems. For example, some people who grew up in low income households who now have good salaries can struggle with debt because of the stigma they faced as a child for not having enough money – and ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ now gives them anxiety and creates a financial burden.
Gambling Debt and Mental Health
We can also overspend to try and find a quick fix or way out of our debt. Gambling can be quickly addictive, especially with online gaming so easy to access from our phones and computers anywhere. Small wins keep you going, in the hope you might eventually win big – you just need one big win, right?
But gambling is an addiction, and it can significantly impact your debt, long-term finances, and your mental health. There are ways you can tackle gambling issues, with the first step admitting that you have difficulty knowing when to stop playing. While you can no longer use credit cards to pay for gambling, there are many ways to add to your debt in trying to get that huge win – and if you don’t want to stop playing even when you’ve lost everything you planned to bet in the first place, that’s a sign your gambling is out of control.
Speak to a Therapist for Spending Problems
You might not think that a therapist can help with debt, but in fact many mental health struggles can be related to financial difficulties. There are often real reasons why you overspend or have difficulty with a gambling problem, from undiagnosed mental health disorders to isolation to decision paralysis issues.
A therapist can help you identify what your triggers for overspending are – and if you’re not an over spender but still struggling with depression and anxiety related to debt, they can help you find coping strategies to work through it.
You might think that if you’re in debt, therapy is an expensive luxury you can’t have. At MoneyMagpie, we like our sponsor BetterHelp, because they have a great flat fee service that matches you with a therapist that specialises in your area of difficulty. You don’t need to spend money commuting to an office either, as they will communicate with you either with online messages, phone calls, or video calls, at a time that suits you.
And MoneyMagpie readers can get 20% off their first month if they sign up using this link.
Arrange a Debt Repayment Plan
As well as seeking help for your mental health during a time of debt, there are practical steps you can take to tackle your debt problem.
Get in touch with either StepChange or National Debtline, which are free services to help people find the right debt management plan to get out of debt. This could be as simple as helping you to arrange payment plans with your credit card company and getting them to freeze interest charges, or it could be as complex as arranging bankruptcy or involuntary insolvency agreements for large debts. It’s a completely free service, and they can help with the admin side which is often the bit people struggle with the most.
Don’t put it off – call them today. Stepchange can be reached on 0800 138 1111 and National Debtline on 0808 808 4000.
Remember You’re Not Alone
It’s really tempting to keep our debt worries to ourselves – but that can eat away at you. It also means that people around you won’t understand why you might always turn down invites to go out, or avoid birthdays and Christmas, or events where gifts are expected.
Talk to a close friend or family member about your difficulties, as it is highly likely they will have experienced money troubles themselves at some point too. Sharing how you’re feeling can be the first step to tackling debt, so remember you’re not alone in your financial struggles and the people who love you will want to be supportive of you.
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