Written by: Rebecca Mennen, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Do you use work to escape pain or use money to prioritize other people’s comfort over your own? Believe it or not, these are all signs of money trauma.
These behaviors over time lead to money disorders that can create havoc in your life.
Financial literacy alone will not help you overcome these unhealthy patterns. This is because most self-sabotaging behavior stems from emotional triggers related to unresolved trauma.
That is why I believe that to improve your financial health you must heal your nervous system and address your mental health.
Connecting the Mind and Body for Healing
You often hear the phrase that when you know better, you do better. Unfortunately, we are not always thinking clearly.
When we’re triggered, typically from a reminder of past trauma, the analytical part of our brain goes offline, and the primal and emotional part of our brain gets activated. This part of the brain will respond to the perceived threat with common responses like a fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. So, even if prior to the trigger you decide to react in a healthier way, your nervous system’s response may unfold differently.
This is because the body is always present. Even if we disconnect or disassociate from a traumatic or stressful event, the body will remember. Stuck emotions residing in our tissues percolate until they’re released. The release can come up in healthy or unhealthy ways. Most often, the old pattern rears its ugly head, creating more shame and continuing the destructive cycle that leads back to the original behavior.
What makes healing more complex is that we can also carry a legacy of trauma from our ancestors. We may not have memories of the occurrences, but we feel it in our bodies and it can cause us to react unfavorably.
Adapting to an Unwell Culture
The challenge for many is that we live in a world that values productivity. Conscious rest and healing are a luxury that many people don’t get to enjoy. In addition to that, our hustle culture causes many people’s nervous systems to be on edge causing them to act out in ways that reflect their need to feel safe.
Many of these behaviors get labeled as disorders or mental illnesses. Yet, I believe they reflect unresolved trauma from an unhealthy culture.
It is no secret that mental illness is on the rise*, that school shootings continue, women’s rights are being negotiated, racism exists, the wealth gap is increasing, and that systematic oppressive structure exists. We can all likely think of even more items to add to this list.
This concerning trend points to a culture that is unwell and the symptoms we are experiencing reflect the trauma inflicted by it. When the world around us keeps us in a hyper-vigilant state that encourages compliance, it also becomes very difficult for people to heal.
Awareness of a New Money Paradigm
The first step to creating change towards a new money paradigm is to become aware of our own individual traumas and to begin the inner work necessary to heal them. With that individual work, we can collectively create a new way of being, one that is in alignment with our values and expresses our authenticity. It is from this place that we can begin to create a life that we don’t want to retire from because it provides us the daily nourishment we need to thrive and tap into our abundant nature.
The ripple effect of individuals waking up from their trauma spells and shifting their lives away from that which no longer serves them will move us in the direction of creating a more peaceful and interconnected existence.
What Works for Long-Lasting, Healthy Change
Talking about life goals is great. So is improving individual financial health. Yet, neither of those addresses the behaviors embedded and wired into the subconscious mind and body. While they’re very much needed, they won’t take anyone across the finish line.
For sustainable change and lasting results, it is important to add modalities that heal the nervous system and help create new neural pathways (new ways of thinking). I have found that mindfulness practices and somatic awareness are effective tools in my wealth coaching practice.
Giving ourselves the opportunity to pause, process, get clear, and discharge stress in the body and mind should be common practices. Teaching people how to do it on their own is my solution for giving back and filling a gap in the financial services world that many don’t address.
Rebecca Mennen, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Rebecca teaches others how to find financial freedom in a more sustainable, regenerative way. She offers workshops, 1:1 mentoring, and group coaching for those interested in learning how to create a more self-reliant lifestyle - one that feels so abundant, that there's no need to retire from it. As a financial planner with 22 years of experience, Rebecca helps clients materialize their dreams through her Money Karma™ program which is founded on the truth that wealth is an inside job.
