It’s not news to mental health professionals that money worries often adversely affect people’s mental health.
The statistics are bleak. People experiencing mental health problems are less likely to be in paid employment. When they are doing paid work, it’s more likely to be low-paid, high-turnover, part-time or temporary. Then there are the extra expenses and problems with managing money that often accompany mental health problems. This difficult combination of factors can increase people’s reliance on credit as a way to make ends meet, while simultaneously making it less easy to access. A poor credit history, complicated applications processes and the high interest and charges can put affordable mainstream credit out of reach.
So what do people do when the boiler breaks down, benefits suddenly stop being paid or there’s just not enough money for day to day living expenses? Often the answer is to turn to family and friends. At the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, we have been looking at what happens to people’s finances, mental health and relationships when they borrow informally in this way.