Feeling financially unstable can cause debt anxiety.
Constantly thinking and worrying about debt is a sure-fire way to create extra stress on yourself.
Being aware of your perception—and creating a plan for debt recovery and a budget—can reduce the stress of a tough financial situation.
Let’s identify some areas that can provoke debt anxiety, and ways you can pursue debt recovery.
Purchases
If you are experiencing debt anxiety, you might find yourself being stressed out by every purchase you make—including groceries.
Making sure your basic needs are met is important. Even though inflation has raised prices on all items, it’s crucial that we still eat a healthy and balanced diet.
Opting for changes to the brands you buy, and switching them out for cheaper ones, can be very helpful and reduce your grocery bill.
To learn about buying alternate brands and more, check out our blog 5 Tips to Save Money When Grocery Shopping.
Vacations
Having debt anxiety can make a vacation seem like a distant dream. The key here is making sensible decisions within your budget.
A great way to avoid debt anxiety and still be mindful of your budget is to go on a staycation. Take a day off from work and explore your city—what’s in your backyard?
November usually kicks off many winter festivals or public events like: public skating in the park, light display festivals, Christmas décor festivals, both indoor and outdoor winter markets, ice sculpture/winter art festivals, and more!
You could also do a winter activity like snowshoeing and go somewhere just outside of city limits like a federal or provincial park for a daytrip.
Planning an elaborate, or costly, getaway will only increase your debt anxiety—but completely restricting yourself from taking a break and recharging will do just as much damage.
These small more affordable staycation suggestions can help with debt recovery and recharge your energy.
Savings
Debt anxiety can not only take its form when it comes to spending, but can manifest when you think about saving as well.
This can be increasingly more challenging when you are trying to save on top of inflation.
If you find that saving the amount you usually put away is tight, than try putting away a smaller amount.
Even though it can be more difficult, there are still ways to put a little extra money aside each month. To learn more, have a look at our blog How to Save During Inflation.
Debt recovery
Making a plan and budget is crucial for any situation, but particularly during a time when you know debt anxiety could strike.
The key to being financially aware and living within a budget is limiting yourself to how much you spend, and how often you spend.
Not sure how to get started? Here are a few tips for you:
1) Gather up previous pay stubs, bills and account statements
2) Enter your monthly income and expenses into a spreadsheet or software that calculates everything for you
3) If your income is greater than your expenses, this will indicate the additional money you have leftover
4) If there is additional money, you can use this towards one of your financial goals (i.e. savings or staycations)
Creating a budget is essential to helping you on your debt recovery journey and a great tool to help reduce debt anxiety.
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