Using Financial Therapy to Deal With Money Issues
Using Financial Therapy to Deal With Money Issues
A financial therapist can help you get to the root of your problem
By Pat OlsenJune 26, 2019
Financial Therapy
Like many married couples, Stephen and Kathy Read of Wayne, Pa., knock heads about money. Stephen, a retired engineer in his mid-70s, is a spender. Kathy, a musician in her mid-60s, is frugal. In 2016, they decided to talk to a money therapist. “They’re supposed to know about these things,” says Stephen.
Meeting with the financial therapist, the Reads say, was a huge help. Stephen says he came away realizing that he and his wife “kind of complement each other.“ Now, he says, he has “great respect” for her financial caution.
lso, as a result of their sessions, the couple were motivated to visit a financial adviser. That helped, too. Theirs is a second marriage for both and the pair had kept their assets separate since getting married, but the adviser recommended combining them.
“I didn’t think Kathy would want that, but she did it, and it really brought us together. Everything is more out in the open now,” Stephen says.
“Financial therapy normally involves talking with people about the beliefs they formed about money in childhood.”
If you have money issues that are stressful, you might want to consider seeing a financial therapist, too.
What Is Financial Therapy?
So, what exactly is financial therapy? And who offers it?
The Financial Therapy Association (FTA) describes financial therapy as “a process informed by both therapeutic and financial competencies that helps people think, feel, and behave differently with money to improve overall well-being through evidence-based practices and interventions.”
Put simply, according to FTA President Meghaan Lurtz, financial therapists help with emotional and relationship issues surrounding money. The work normally involves talking with people about the beliefs they formed about money in childhood.
Practitioners include mental health professionals such as psychologists and marriage and family therapists, as well as financial consultants and advisers. They can choose to become a Certified Financial Therapist after completing a program offered by colleges and, as of recently, the FTA, and then passing a test.
Why People See Financial Therapists
Financial therapists say people see them for a variety of reasons.
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