So what is financial stress? Well…

• Have you ever curled up in the fetal position and cried your guts out over money?

• Have you ever been in the checkout line and nervously swiped your debit/credit card hoping for dear life it wouldn’t decline?

• Have you ever been so scared about not making your mortgage or rent that you started imagining what life would be like as a homeless vagrant?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions then you know first hand exactly what it money stress is. It’s that non-stop nagging feeling you get in the pit of your stomach when all you can think about is how the h*ll you are going to make ends meet.

And I totally get that feeling because we’ve ALL been there, including me.

We’ve all had financial stress at some point in our lives. And it’s totally normal to feel threatened and scared when our livelihood is at risk.

Our body’s natural response under stress is to go into fight or flight mode, which means we either flee the dangerous situation OR stay and fight.

But did you know that if we stay stressed for too long we can actually be stuck in fight or flight to the point that our body and mind ends up being paralyzed by fear?

And that is EXACTLY what happens to many of us when we stress about money because it’s the kind of stress that is constant. We think about it when we are at work, at home, at the movies, in the shower, etc. Financial stress does not just go away.

But here’s the crappy part about that – how can you possibly find solutions and ways to get OUT of your not-so-great financial predicament if you are paralyzed by fear?  You can’t!

That’s why it’s so important to keep your financial stress in check, no matter what is going on around you. Do what you need to get the emotions out – cry, scream, whatever – but when your meltdown is over try not to think about it anymore.

I know it can be hard but it’s the one thing that could get you thinking more clearly so you can find ways to improve your situation.

It’s just too hard to make anything  if you are in constant freak out mode!

I know this first hand because I was a Broke Sourpuss all throughout my 20s. All that time I was a total financial stress ball, which only kept me broke.

One of the things that helped me find a way out of my dark financial pit was to laugh and relax more. That’s when I turned to South Park:

It made me laugh out loud and totally forget about my financial stress. I know it sounds weird but it was actually one of the things that helped my money problems go away altogether.

Because constant financial stress really doesn’t get you anywhere. If anything, it only makes your money problems much worse and last longer. YIKES!

So how about you…what makes you relax and laugh? Tell me in the comments below!

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