My Debt Free Journey Started With a Pressure Cooker
I am a big believer in having as little debt as possible, but probably not for the reason you are thinking. There are actual physical, emotional and financial reasons for you to get rid of your debt.
When I was on my journey to getting rid of my student loans I was stressed constantly! And the ironic part was that I couldn’t afford the occasional massage, because I had no money, and I couldn’t relax by curling up on the couch because I was working all the time.
Symptoms of financial stress are real, here are a few of the big ones:
The first real reason to get rid of your debt is that you are carrying less risk, hello 2020. Lose your job? Pay cut? I dropped from 40 hours/week to 20 hours/week basically overnight at my dayjob because of the pandemic, and that was way more stressful than my previous student loan stress. But since my loans were paid off, I just had to reevaluate my budget and watch my spending. Even though I didn’t have extra money, I wasn’t wasting what little money I did have on debt payments.
A better credit score is another. Sure, debt is a factor for a good credit score but it’s not that simple. You can have too much debt which would end up costing you thousands of dollars of interest for that next house, car or boat you’ve been eyeing up because you didn’t qualify for a better interest rate. And debt is actually a very small percentage of this score. The only debt I have is a mortgage and I pay my credit card in full every month and my rating is still excellent, it can be done!
Better cognitive function is next up. Yup, this is proven! Studies show that experiencing poverty impaired people’s attention span, working memory, and self-control. Did someone say self control? Have I ever mentioned that I once bought a pressure cooker on an infomercial before Instapot was even a thing? Yeah, I couldn’t afford it and who knows why I thought I needed one. Now I have the pleasure of a kitchen appliance that weighs a ton that I use once a month when I decide to make rice. Fortunately, studies also show that paying off debt reverses these problems!
Less chronic pain is another real benefit to getting rid of your debt. People with high levels of stress caused from debt were more likely to experience migraines, back pain and general muscle tension. They were also more likely to buy over-the-counter painkillers.
Money Crashers goes into thirteen other reasons you will want to get rid of your debt. The general consensus is that debt is bad, we all know that. But maybe you will see some of your symptoms on this list, just like I did. And maybe it will be enough for you to take the steps to pay down any unnecessary debt to improve your finances along with your mental and physical health.
