How healthy finances can help create a healthier you
By Jo & Carl Violeta
A
s parents, we know how hard it is to look after yourself sometimes. With sleep deprivation, breaking up fights between siblings and toilet training, it’s rare to sit down and drink a cup of coffee while it’s still warm, let alone take time out for some serious self-care. Looking after tiny humans is fun, it’s rewarding, but it’s also hard-work and time-consuming, and sometimes, well, it’s overwhelming.
We give so much of ourselves to others. But it’s also important to pay attention to our own wellbeing. When we think of wellbeing, we traditionally think of activities like yoga, meditation and massages, but a surprising way to boost your emotional wellbeing is by creating a solid financial plan. Yep. Getting your money and your budget sorted can make you feel amazing and reduce stress levels. Research by the Financial Planning Standards Council found that people ‘who had sought financial advice reported significantly higher levels of 28
Peninsula Kids – Autumn 2020
both financial and emotional wellbeing than those who had no advice at all or simply limited advice’. The research also found that having your finances in order can ‘instil confidence about reaching a wide spectrum of life goals’. Also, having enough money to at least meet minimum needs is required for a baseline level of happiness. Reducing unhealthy levels of stress can benefit our emotional and physical wellbeing. Financial issues are rated as one of the top causes of stress. Unfortunately, millions of Australians report experiencing financial stress. The reasons for experiencing financial stress can vary. Some of the most common causes are debt, home loans, retirement, supporting the family and budgeting. Although we, like many other parents, are still working towards finding balance and carving out time to look after our wellbeing, we do have the finance side of things sorted. And you can too!