Money stress tough on the mental health
New Zealanders who identify as being seriously worried about money are spending the equivalent of up to a full work day each week dealing with their own financial concerns.
The Commission for Financial Capability has released new research on financial wellbeing.
The survey of more than 1000 people found women, Maori and Pacific Islanders were significantly more likely to be worried or distracted by financial matters while at work.
Europeans were least likely to say their financial situation was a constant burden, or let it affect their work.
Almost 70 per cent of respondents who said their financial situation was a serious concern spent time at work dealing with it.
About 10 per cent of them spent up to eight hours a week on their own finances. Although women were more likely to be worried, men spent more time at work dealing with it.
Retirement Commissioner Diane Maxwell said the connection between money and wellbeing was not understood by people who were comfortably off.
‘‘If you’ve always been okay financially you don’t know that gnawing fear in the pit of your stomach, particularly when it comes to providing a home and food for your children,’’ she said.
‘‘Stressing about money, about paying the rent and putting food on the table, affects our ability to think straight.
‘‘It affects our sleep and undermines our confidence in ourselves. A comment I’ve heard a lot is ‘I feel like a loser’. That feeling gets worse when we look around and everyone else seems to have more. It makes it hard to hold your head high, have ideas, contribute in a meeting . . . Those things that are already stressful, like job interviews, get even harder. That means it can be more difficult to climb your way out of financial stress, and those knockbacks undermine your confidence further.’’
She said people would sometimes get tunnel-vision around money, which reduced their long-term thinking.
‘‘It means we pay that ‘poverty premium’, buying daily bus tickets instead of getting cheaper tickets via a hop card – which requires an upfront investment. Paying the power bill on the last day so missing out on the discount . . . When things are tight we often give up insurances to make savings, which takes away the peace of mind they bring.’’
A fear of unexpected bills could bring its own stress, Maxwell said. ‘‘Post stays unopened because you’re frightened about what’s inside, and you just don’t know how you’re going to handle it.’’
One person the commission dealt with had not opened the post in months and had missed a tax refund cheque for $1200.
‘‘It means you spend your life on ‘high alert’ for things going wrong. After a while, that stress can affect us physically and mentally, which compounds everything.’’
People who felt in control of their money, felt in control of life.
‘‘Productivity and engagement at work goes up, absenteeism goes down. They feel more equipped to handle things, better about themselves and better about the future.’’
Psychologist Sara Chatwin, of MindWorks, said many people who were stressed about money did not know where their income was going.
‘‘They say ignorance is bliss but it’s actually not in regard to finances. Getting your head around where you’re at and where you’re spending your money is key.’’
Sometimes people found that when they put a budget in place and understood what was happening, the situation was not as bad as they thought, she said.
Financial coach Hannah McQueen, of EnableMe, said financial stress was the biggest cause of relationship breakdown and women’s insomnia.
‘‘A financially-stressed employee costs thousands in lost productivity for their employer. It leads to anxiety and often creates a more unhealthy relationship with money.
‘‘Weirdly, we find that if you are sinking it makes people spend more money on living as a coping mechanism or, ironically, a way to feel in control, for a short time. They know that whatever they do won’t be enough to fix it, so they take the view of ‘I might as go out with a bang’ with their spending.’’