The 24-hour news cycle keeps us informed of the imbalances and inequities experienced all over the world. This struggle never ceases, and we ponder what is within our reach of assistance and understanding. Educating oneself is a helpful way to make sense of the world and lessen anxiety around the unknown. Here is why managing your money should be at the top of your list when practicing self-care.

Financial Illiteracy Is Common

People often forgo financial self-care for other forms of self-care due to vast financial illiteracy. Individuals are often provided little financial education in their formative years, and unfortunately, our collective ignorance is often profitable for the financial industry. For example, the negative equity created when a young servicemember purchases their first car (a depreciating asset) at 22% interest, will take years to “right” itself through rolling negative equity into future car purchases and paying exorbitant interest amounts. This represents money that misses opportunities to grow through compound interest to one day support a comfortable retirement, a home renovation, or a two-week trip abroad. When making any large purchase, it can quite literally pay to educate yourself with financing options.

The Cost of Financial Illiteracy

Going to college does not guarantee a high-paying career anymore and many are living through the strain of years of crushing student loan debt that can extend into their elderly years. College debt, on a surface level, represents a missed investment opportunity. While the argument can be made that you are investing in your future and your career, it often still represents at least a decade of money not being invested on that person’s behalf. That is not to say that investing in a higher education is not a smart career move, it is just something that you should educate yourself on to make an informed decision before potentially committing to decades of debt.

Our finances are a symptom and not a cause or effect. The effects of financial illiteracy are crushing debt loads, insolvency, and stress, which can result in ensuing health challenges.

Getting Started on Your Path to Financial Literacy

As a Personal Financial Counselor (PFC) providing financial counseling and advice to military families for more than 15 years, I have provided guidance to hundreds  of individuals to achieve their financial goals and maintain their financial well-being. This often involves completing a thorough spending plan which includes budgeting for items such as supplementing income, eating out, supporting lifestyle habits, entertainment, and even leaving room for the occasional indulgence (manicures/pedicures). You can do this yourself by:

1. Make a list of essential expenses—food, housing, childcare, etc. This will provide great insight into your values and help you prioritize what is non-negotiable.
2. Start small—be mindful that change takes time. Identify 1-2 items that you are willing to cut out of your spending habits by consolidating the non-essentials. Make a note of the impact on your savings. Then adjust more the following month. Change that is too much too fast can negatively impact long-term success.
3. Stay motivated—remember that financial wellness is a part of your overall self-care. Understand that staying interested in and educating yourself on your finances is a long-term investment in your personal (and family’s) well-being.

Free Financial Resources for Military Service Members

If you are a military Service member, you are in luck. You have access to Personal Financial Counselors (PFC) and Military and Family Life Counselors (MFLCs) who can help you get started on your path to financial wellness today. The Financial Readiness PFC Locator Map can assist with finding the financial counselor nearest you in both CONUS and OCONUS locations. Visit Military OneSource to find an MFLC near you.

Explore tips and information to protect your mental health and deal with grief and loss of loved ones due to the worldwide impacts of COVID-19.

When else in our lifetime can we say all people in all countries of the world have directly experienced grief and loss due to the same traumatic event? Now that we are living through the COVID-19 pandemic, this is the sad reality. Our very sense of normalcy has been turned upside down, we have lost loved ones, missed milestones and other life events, and faced social isolation. We all hear about the traumas that occur across our globe – 9/11, weather events, war – and we may be affected; but COVID-19 has profoundly touched and changed each of our lives in many similar ways. As our world is adjusting to a now improving, but still evolving, pandemic, here are some tips to protect our mental health.

Dealing with grief and loss from COVID-19

While it’s never easy when we lose a loved one, grief and loss during the pandemic has been exacerbated by the confusion, fear, and social isolation we have all experienced. The novel coronavirus, COVID-19, did not come with an instruction manual and we had to learn, very quickly, how it was spread, how it affected those who got infected, and how to avoid being infected. Confusion around all of these things, and how a family member or friend could have died from this virus, was inevitable. At the same time, fear of the unknown and for one’s own health and safety was inescapable. Due to the critical social distancing measures, we could not even visit our loved ones in the hospital, even if the worst was expected. We could not begin our grieving process by honoring those we lost with traditional funeral services. As we’re navigating the stages of grief during COVID-19, here are some things to remember:

• You may hear about the “stages of grief,” but it’s normal to bounce back and forth between the stages and not experience them in a linear way.
• No matter what you’re feeling, your feelings are valid, and you are entitled to them; avoid telling yourself you should be feeling one way or another.
• Grieving doesn’t mean you are forgetting or totally letting go.
• It’s important to build a support system.
• With grief comes growth.

Practicing self-care to cope with grief and loss

Grieving is an intensely personal process. We can start to feel better when we reach out to loved ones and professionals for support, but there is no one who knows us better than ourselves, and we can always be our own best advocate. Knowing that our lost loved ones surely would want us to be happy and not suffer, it’s important to prioritize our own self-care and compassion to unlock its immense healing power. Engaging in self-care activities – exercise, journaling, meditation, doing something creative, etc. – can help us build resiliency and mental strength, elevate our mood, process our feelings, and cope effectively. As we strive to take care of and make time for ourselves, the following are some tips to keep in mind:

• Understand that grief is an ongoing process; it requires our self-patience and kindness.
• Realize that helping yourself does not mean you are avoiding the experience, rather that you are embracing it.
• Treat yourself the way you would treat a close friend or family member who is going through the same thing.
• Be deliberate and purposeful in taking breaks to mentally check out and/or do something that makes you happy or laugh.
• Focus on the present to ease the burdens of, and make more palatable, all that must be done that day, week, month, etc.
• Grant yourself permission to feel, as it’s a natural part of the grieving process; understand it’s okay to be vulnerable.

We can find meaning in the losses we have endured through this ordeal. Our lost loved ones gave us many gifts, and we can pick up on those gifts in celebration of their memories. We can embrace life and do the things that make us happy. We can reflect on the changes and losses caused by the pandemic that forced us to reevaluate our priorities, taking with us the good and leaving behind the bad. And we must always remember to seek help when it’s needed.