Narcissistic abuse can lead lasting psycho-emotional and physical scars. However, there is another component that is less discussed: financial abuse. Perpetrators of abusive power and control often cut off the targeted person’s access to money or credit to make them dependent on the relationship. In fact, financial abuse can continue long after the relationship has ended in the form of running up debts in the survivor’s name, unpaid alimony and child support, vexatious litigation, and more.
But there is hope for healing. If narcissistic abuse has devastated on your finances, you can take concrete steps towards recovery. This article will provide a roadmap to get you back on track.
Coaching for Financial Healing After Abuse
The first step toward getting your finances in order is to begin your healing journey under the expert guidance of a narcissistic abuse recovery coach. Your coach will equip you with tools and guidance to address limiting beliefs and set financial goals. This will empower you to tackle the practical steps of calculating your debt, creating a budget, and building a plan for financial recovery.
With a trauma-informed coach by your side, you’ll break free from unhealthy coping mechanisms like denial and emotional walls. Together, you’ll develop healthy strategies to move forward.
Facing the reality of abuse is not easy, but change won’t happen overnight. Financial healing is a journey that often includes stages of shock, anger, and grief. A coach can equip you to navigate these emotions and rediscover your strengths.
Learn about personal finance
The next thing you’ll need to do is learn the basics of financial literacy. Particularly if you’ve been living under someone else’s finances for a long period, you might not be familiar with basic financial concepts and how to follow them. These include the following:
Eliminating debt
If you’ve been the victim of financial manipulation and have been left with outstanding debts, this can seem like an insurmountable problem. It doesn’t have to overwhelm you, though. There are ways to manage debts that will allow you to live a normal life without allowing them to continue piling up.
For one thing, you should always make minimum payments on debts where they are required. Not doing this will cause your interest levels to increase, and you will soon see your debts spinning out of control. Pay at least the minimum, and do it by the required deadlines.
You should also consider trying to eliminate one or more debts that have particularly high interest rates. It can be a big relief to get a big debt out of the way, and it can allow you to focus on more manageable ones. Going to a debt consolidator might also be an option.
Learning how to budget
You might not be familiar with the basic concepts of budgeting. Drawing up a distinct budget with categories for all of your monthly expenditures is vital for keeping track of what you spend. When you do this, you should be sure to make space for everything that you spend money on, even small expenses. Everything adds up over time.
As you track your budget, see if there might be things you spend on unnecessarily. If you have memberships or subscriptions that you don’t use very often, for example, think about eliminating one or more of them. It might make your daily finances much easier.
Finding ways to increase your income
Learning how to increase income can change your life fundamentally, from always feeling like you’re on the edge to having genuine financial freedom. There are numerous ways that you can do this:
- Take on a side hustle. There are lots of things that people are doing these days on the side, from blogging for money to driving Ubers to writing affiliate marketing pieces. Think about what your skills are and how you might profit off of them.
- Create an investment portfolio. Even if your means are modest, you might be able to find stocks that provide dividends on a regular basis.
- Look into changing careers. These days, lots of people are changing careers later in life. It’s never too late to start over.
Ultimately, you want to reach the stage where you are not only surviving but thriving.
It gets better in the end
Rebuilding your life after narcissistic abuse is seldom easy. However, many people do recover from the wounds that they suffer eventually if they take the right steps towards recovery. In addition to the steps mentioned in this article, you should always seek the support of friends and allow them to help you in times of need. It may take a long time to fully recover, but taking control of your finances is an essential step on the road to a better life.
