The Importance of Investing in Your Mental Health

Money is one part numbers, one part mindset. But lately, it feels like mindset and mental health go hand in hand.

I know they do for me.

Recently, I had a week where the garage door, freezer, and microwave all broke in one week (on top of an expected dental bill). I had to work harder than ever not to fall into a negative spiral about it.

Stuff breaks. Health bills happen. That stuff is all normal. Working on the numbers side of my finances prepared me for those unexpected expenses. Yet, my brain still says, “But I didn’t WANT to spend my money on that. Now our slush fund is depleted! Why me? No fair!”

I think during “normal” times, it’s easier to shift those voices and get grounded back to the reality of the situation. You remind yourself that stuff happens, that’s why you had a slush fund, you are safe and financially solid, and you move on.

But this year, the bandwidth of our coping mechanisms is being dominated by world events. Throw in a freezer breaking and it feels like the thing that will boil the pot over.

It’s harder to cope, harder to stop the anxiety spiral, harder to get grounded.

That’s the reality of it.

So as we head into Fall and prepare for a pandemic winter, my question for you is:

What can you do to cultivate a healthy mindset (money, and otherwise) through the winter?

I think using our financial resources to tend to our mental health is as critical as ever. In fact, it might be the BEST way you can invest your money right now.

Get in touch with your intuition and ask yourself what would feel really good to do to help you prepare for winter? Here are some ideas to get you thinking:

• Are there small upgrades (a new soft blanket, or new lamp) that you can get to make one corner of your home extra cozy and inviting?
• Maybe buckling down and socking some money away would give you the peace of mind you have been craving.
• See if your budget can handle some services (meal boxes, amazon deliveries, etc) that can help streamline your busy life and give you some relief.
• Maybe you buy the plane ticket for spring, so you have something to look forward to.
• Start allocating money to your health care category so you can get the chiropractic/therapist/energy healing/massage work you need to feel your best.

You need to have a financial plan in place so you are protecting yourself for now and the future. But you also need to think about how you’re investing it in YOU.

Especially right now. Especially this year.

I want you to think of money as a resource to support your mental health, now and always. Most people I work with HAVE the money to do these things, they just need to give themselves permission to spend money on themselves in this way and stop wasting money in other areas.

What spending is not adding value in your life? How would it feel to replace that spending with some ideas from the above list?

Aligning your values to your spending, and your personal care, is a practice that will ebb and flow with the seasons of the year and the seasons of life. Use this as an opportunity to check-in with your spending, your values, and your mental health, to see what adjustments you can make to support yourself through the months to come.