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Debt and wellbeing report ONS

ended 22. February 2023

Tomorrow morning at 09:30, the Office for National Statistics is publishing a detailed report on the relationship between debt and wellbeing between September 2022 and January 2023. It's likely to get a fair bit of pick-up given the extreme financial pressure many households are under. If you'd like to contribute and have the chance to be featured in the local and national media, please answer any or all of the three questions below. Let us know if you're available for radio interviews tomorrow, too.

  • Have you seen an increase in the number of people struggling with their mental health due to financial worries over the past 6-9 months?
  • Are many people having to cancel their private therapy sessions due to financial pressures, potentially making things worse?
  • Each situation is different, but which organisations do you recommend people struggling with debt turn to in the first instance? 
  • What can people do to help ease their financial worries if they feel backed into a corner?

3 responses from the Newspage community

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Vanessa Louise Moore
Emotional Health Coach. Wellbeing and self-care expert at Vanessa Loves
The number of people affected by anxiety due to financial pressures is growing sharply, evident through the number of clients I've seen over the past 6-9 months. Denial of the severity of the situation often leads to people burying their heads in the sand, which results in a vicious cycle that can be hard to get out of. Signs of strain on a person’s mental health will often include irrational and volatile behaviour and isolating themselves. Unfortunately, therapy time is often the first to go during times of financial pressure, as people panic to try and 'fix things' by working harder, which can exacerbate the poor state of their mental health, often through burnout. The irony is, this is the most crucial time to be prioritising themselves and self-care. Take a breath and remember everything passes and it’s never the end of the world.
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Joshua Gerstler
Chartered Financial Planner at The Orchard Practice
A lot of people are feeling anxious about their finances at the moment as disposable income is squeezed. I try and encourage our clients to talk about and discuss it in our meetings. Our meeting is the time to feel anxious about it and get all your fears off your chest, so that I can help come up with a sensible plan so that you do not need to feel anxious. Once you leave the meeting you can stop thinking about it.
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Dr Felicity Baker
Co-Founder/ Clinical Psychologist at Ultimate Resilience Ltd
Being able to access help and support at an early stage is central to managing the impact of financial stress, which is now the leading cause of stress outside work, outranking parenting, relationships and bereavement. Talking to a trusted friend, colleague or family member is a good starting point. If you are feeling down, anxious or troubled, or if you are worried about someone else, there are lots of free and readily available sources of support, such as 24-hour online peer support (Mind), helpline and live chat available 24 hours a day (Campaign Against Living Miserably), 24-hour support for anyone who is troubled or feeling suicidal via helpline, email and or self-help app (Samaritans). If the problems you are experiencing seem to persist for several weeks, speak to your GP, who will be able to suggest other sources of help.