3: How to Deal with Money Anxiety

Are you feeling anxious about money? Today we talk about how to deal with money anxiety or in other words, how to feel better!

Before we get into it, you need to understand the relationship between our primitive brain and our prefrontal cortex, or higher brain and how feeling anxiety evolved from something that was very useful to our survival but rarely is in our modern day.

For most people, anxiety is not a pleasant feeling and most of us will do anything to avoid it. Be sure to listen to the episode to learn an easy process to manage anxiety and download the FREE worksheet to walk you through it!

If you want to uplevel your money and improve your mindset, you need to understand how anxiety works. Why? Because we all face anxiety and likely always will. However, anxiety does not have to result in paralysis and inaction. Instead, by learning what anxiety is and how to process it, you can move through your anxiety more productively. 

Wealthy Mom MD quote on money anxiety

Generally, when people feel anxious, they do one of three things: resist it, avoid it, or react to it. In order to truly deal with anxiety, though, we need to choose to fully experience it. By doing so, we can regain control and reflect more accurately on our situation. 

One of the most important things to remember about anxiety has to do with mindset. All of our feelings come from thoughts and beliefs. The reason that these beliefs become so powerful is because they feel like the truth to us. 

Learning how to turn a more critical eye to the thoughts and beliefs that make us anxious is key. 

The four-step process I recommend is to:

  1. Write down all of your anxieties
  2. Separate out the facts from thoughts, beliefs, and feelings
  3. Pick one thought and question it
  4. Learn to focus on the present

Explore this approach more by downloading my free worksheet and tuning into this episode.

Most of the time, when we are anxious, we are thinking about something that has not happened yet. Anxiety can be so distracting and overwhelming that it keeps us from focusing on the present. While worrying and enduring anxiety can sometimes feel productive, oftentimes it leaves us in a state of inaction. That is why learning to be more present focused, rather than future focused, can be so effective. No one’s life is ever going to be totally free from anxiety. Learning to process it effectively, though, will leave you productive instead of paralyzed. 

In this episode, we also explore:

  • How the primitive brain doesn’t always fit into the modern world
  • What spurs anxiety 
  • The differences between feelings and beliefs
  • A deeper dive into the four-step process to deal with anxiety 
  • My personal experience with processing anxiety with job loss during the pandemic
  • Effective strategies for focusing on the present 

Enjoy the show?

Subscribe to the podcast (on whichever platform you listen on) so you don’t miss an episode! My favorite podcast player is Overcast.

If you love what you’re hearing on the podcast, I would be SO grateful if you left me a review on iTunes. These reviews help other people find this podcast. And you may just hear me read your review on the podcast! To review: click here, then select “Ratings and Reviews” and “Write a Review” and let me know what your favorite part of the podcast is. Thank you!

Featured on the episode:

Get our guide

Get the bestselling book - Defining Wealth for Women.

Posted in

Recent Posts

Wealthy Mom MD with Bonnie Koo | Money Goals: Get Specific to Get Results

180: Money Goals: Get Specific to Get Results

How do you know when you’ve actually reached your goal? This is why having a concrete number in mind is one of the most useful ways to set goals for your financial freedom. I’m giving you the easiest ways to set yourself up for real success when it comes to identifying and achieving your financial goals.

Wealthy Mom MD with Bonnie Koo | 5 Steps for Auditing Your 2023 Goals

179: 5 Steps for Auditing Your 2023 Goals

Assess your progress so far in 2023 and decide what you can achieve over the remainder of the year. I’m sharing my five-step process for auditing your goals, demonstrating why it’s never too late to start setting goals, and providing you with the advice you need to start deciding exactly what you want to achieve in the closing stages of this year.

Wealthy Mom MD with Bonnie Koo | Insurance: What Physicians and Entrepreneurs Need to Know with Larry Keller

178: Insurance: What Physicians and Entrepreneurs Need to Know with Larry Keller

Even if you’re single, if you intend to have children at some stage in your life, you need life insurance. It’s cheaper now than it ever will be in the future, and if I hadn’t been insured when I was, I’d be paying a whole lot more than I am now. We’re also talking about disability insurance, which is something most people tend to overlook, but it’s definitely worth considering, especially if you’re moving into the world of entrepreneurship.