Money Matters This New Year

We don’t always like to talk about it, but money matters.  Doesn’t it? It’s often one of the contributing causes for broken families, soured relationships, and a whole lot of stress.  The latter is especially true for many folks this time of year.  The Christmas holidays are past and many Americans are staring at big credit card bills, plus we all have extra expenses going out for heating our homes throughout the winter months.

At the PTI, we know that mental well-being encompasses far more than just taking your meds and reading a book.  It encompasses the entirety of life.  Everything is interconnected with our emotional and mental well-being including our finances.  Today we’d like to acknowledge the stress that money causes and give some tips for the new year.

Tips For Financial Management

• Do you ever wonder where it all went?  Budget trackers and personal finance sites, such as MINT offer a host of services as well as warning alerts that pop up whenever you have unusual spending.  MINT is a free service, no hidden fees whatsoever, and allows you to keep track of your expenses month over month so you can indeed see where it all goes.

• Pay off higher interest credit cards first.  Try not to accumulate more on your credit cards after increased spending during the holidays.  If you have multiple cards, make higher payments to pay off the one with higher interest.  By doing so, you’ll save money in the long run by not paying as much in interest.  Be sure that you don’t miss a payment or pay it late because that will incur more charges and fees.

• Visit your bank.  A simple visit however can potentially help you discover some options you didn’t know existed.  Opening up a savings account, even though the interest these days doesn’t even deserve to be called “paltry,” can help build up towards a goal.  Setting up an automatic transfer every month, even if it’s just $5, will go a long way towards meeting that goal.  Behaviorally, people who use an automated transfer service to build up savings will do so more quickly because the choice of whether or not to do it each month is taken out of the equation.

If the PTI is part of your support network this new year and you have needs beyond mental health, simply ask.  We may be able to refer you to a local program or community resource that can help fill that need.  If you’re not part of the PTI family and are considering mental health as part of a positive change this new year, there’s no harm in giving us a call.  We have two great locations to serve you as a one-stop shop model for mental health, as most services you will need are all under one roof.  Our Baton Rouge and Covington offices have excellent staff and are well equipped for screening, medication management, therapy, and much more.  We’re always standing by and ready to help.