How Poor Financial Circumstances Affect Your Health
By Rachel Shouse
Financial hardship is one of the big stressors adults could go through at some point. While not everyone experiences this, most do. While money might be at the forefront of your thinking, there are other things to worry about as well. Stressed caused by financial struggles hurts more than your wallet. Financial hardship can lead to poor mental and physical health and a less pleasing lifestyle. A budget could be a big help in fixing these problems though.
Money and How It's Linked to Your Physical and Mental Health
While money surely doesn't buy everything, for many people it could provide some much needed stress relief. Too much stress can cause your brain to create less of the feel good chemicals that it normally would. It hinders your ability to focus and complete tasks. Unfortunately, an extreme amount of stress can lead to depression and anxiety. Make sure you get help if you ever feel like you haven't been your normal self.
While the mental aspect of money problems seems to be felt as the worst, there are also physical side effects as well. Stress can cause your heart rate to rise which means your heart is having to work harder than normal and can cause heart disease. Feeling constantly overwhelmed also causes you to get less sleep. One more negative effect financial hardships have on your health is the possible inability to seek medical care when you need it. There are endless consequences to that circumstance.
Poor Money Habits and How They Affect Your Life
Money does not mean happiness. It does mean that you'd be able to do more activities or go out and have fun more often. This isn't the case for many individuals and families though. Many families can't even afford to have a lazy night and order out instead of cooking at home. While it's OK to get takeout occasionally, it's not a habit you want to create even if your money is in order.
Creating a Budget That Works
One of the biggest mistakes people make with their money is not creating a budget. Without telling your money what it's going to do and when, you'll find yourself controlled by the money you worked hard to earn. The best way to control your money is by using the zero-based budget. This means that your income minus your expenses will equal zero. This is helpful because you'll actually find extra money within three months of doing a budget this way. Money you either didn't know you were spending or were unaware of the amount.
Don't feel ashamed for going through hard financial times. As mentioned before, most people are going to struggle in this way at some point in their lives. There are people out there who are trained to help you. Ask for help if you need it.
To learn more about your health, wellness and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Huntington Beach, Calif.