Managing Financial Stress

Hi, and welcome to this course on financial stress. So you might be brand new to meditation or perhaps you've been doing it for a while. Either way, the skill of meditation is something that can be used in all aspects of your life. We're training the mind to be more present, connected, and compassionate so that we have this space to address challenges in a skillful way. Financial issues are extremely stressful and more common than you think, and it can feel very isolating. So if you are experiencing a lot of stress regarding your finances, please know you're not alone. More than that, when we're in a vulnerable and difficult situation with our finances, it can take a huge toll on our mental health and we can be left feeling totally debilitated and trapped. This course is designed to help calm the panic you might be feeling, so you're better able to step back and to find ways to start to change your relationship and perspective with money. We'll explore ways to review our financial circumstances in an honest and kind way, how to talk about money, and some helpful tips on budgeting and mindful spending. I was very fortunate to spend some time virtually with a wonderful lady called Alex Holder, who has written a book called "Open Up: The Power of Talking About Money." Many of the tips I share with you were from conversations I had with her and from reading her book. So, I recommend you checking it out as well. Financial stress comes in all shapes and sizes. So whether you're here due to credit card debt, student loans, fallout from a relationship, job loss, or perhaps you're holding down multiple jobs, your worries are your worries. When we're stressed, we're in fight-flight or freeze mode. We almost become paralyzed to do something about a problem, and it can become quite troublesome. We start to apply that stress to areas of our life where it's not necessary, where it's not helpful, and it can start to become quite destructive. So for this course, we're going to use a labeling or noting technique. Don't worry if you haven't done this before. I'll guide you through each step. This technique really helps you to notice when you get caught up in negative rumination, so you're better placed to start to break those thought patterns that are so unhelpful. But right now I'd like you to just take a moment to get comfortable, wherever you're sitting. Eyes open, nice, upright back, and relaxed shoulders. And when you're ready, just start by taking some nice, big, deep breaths. Breathing in through the nose and out through the mouth. And on your next out breath, just gently closing the eyes and returning your breath to normal, in and out through the nose. As you just settle in to the different physical senses, your body pressing down in the seat beneath you, hands in the lap, just aware of...