Causes of Stress: Rating The Most Stressful Financial Events

by Silicon Valley Blogger on March 15, 2007

financial stress
The whole subject of finances is one of the most common causes of disagreement and discord in a family and I’m sure there has never been a home that hasn’t been touched by stress at some point or another due to money. It’s a tough subject where issues of power, control and ego are in effect and where the interplay between these elements end up fueling explosive and problematic conditions at times.

I thought about this a bit and came up with a list of what I think are the most common financial stressors to one’s life, wondering how well anyone can really prepare for such challenges if they ever arise. There’s this saying: “Even the best laid plans can be foiled.” By the unexpected that is. Still, we get ready and brace ourselves for what can possibly happen, and hope our financial house can withstand the storms of fate, time and life changes.


This list is not from a formal study but rather from my own research and observations, but I’ve discovered that a measuring scale for stress actually exists, and it’s called the Holmes-Rahe scale. So I went ahead and assigned points to these events based on the scale, and provided approximate points where events were not officially represented.

I’ve divided the list into two sections — one that describes typical, ordinary financial stressors which most people inevitably go through, while the other describes stressors due to less likely but impactful events which may or may not ever happen to you.

The Most Stressful Financial Events You Should Prepare For

Ordinary Life Changes That Affect Your Finances

Financial Events Financial Crisis Units
Merging assets due to a marriage 50
Losing a job 47
Retiring 45
Getting “sandwiched” and caring for children and parents (or older family members) 40
Accommodating new children in the family 39
Changing careers or job responsibilities 32
Launching a business 32
Relocating 30
Spouse leaves work or returns to work 26
Lifestyle changes, deliberate or otherwise 25
Remodeling a house 25
Troubles at work 23
Buying a house 20
Claiming insurance for medical purposes 20

 

Extraordinary Life Changes That Affect Your Finances

Financial Events Financial Crisis Units
Death and losing a breadwinner 100
Dividing assets during divorce 73
Going through probate 50
Enforcing a prenup when the other side isn’t interested 40
Becoming suddenly wealthy, when you need to please everyone 38
Going through bankruptcy or carrying a large debt 31
Going through foreclosure 30
Becoming a scam victim 30
Claiming insurance for disaster 30

 

Some surprising findings from trends based on the official list: changes in your marital status through marriage, divorce, separation or reconciliation; changes in your state of employment such as retirement and unemployment; and changing your financial status, end up rating higher in the stress scale than (or at least equal to) foreclosing your house, filing for bankruptcy or carrying a large debt! Well that was news to me. I can only guess why. Could it be because the highly stressful events involve and change your existing relationships more than the less stressful events do?

The scale can give you some idea of how stressed you are. However, if you really want further quantification of your scores, you can try out this actual Holmes Rahe test and see what your risk of serious illness happens to be!

I found these additional facts about stress fascinating.

Job-related stress is extremely common. According to the Jobs Rated Almanac, the five most stressful jobs are:

1. President of the United States

2. Firefighter

3. Senior corporate executive

4. Race car driver

5. Taxi driver

The five least stressful jobs, according to the Jobs Rated Almanac, are:

1. Medical records technician

2. Janitor

3. Forklift operator

4. Musical instrument repairer

5. Florist

Q: Are some people more vulnerable to stress than others?

A: Yes. Personality type plays a role in reaction to stress. For example, people who drive themselves hard and are impatient (sometimes called Type A personalities) may be more at risk for stress-related physical problems. Certain occupations, such as law enforcement or air traffic control, are clearly more stressful than others. In addition, people with a personal or family history of mental illness may be affected more by stress.

Let’s see, how many serious bloggers out there have “Type A” personalities? Now to learn more about this subject, do check out this great web site. It may just help you de-stress!

-ooOoo-

The best way to meet these stressful money situations head on is to prepare. Granted, it can be difficult to discuss some of these things and make mutual decisions with your partner, and sadly in many cases, it can be pretty much impossible to reach agreement over some issues. In fact, some events may be so unpalatable to imagine, that you may prefer to “not even go there” with your loved one.

Unpleasant or not, for many of the events outlined above, you can certainly work on plans to smoothen your transitions better. It is always our heartfelt hope that we can somehow stave off these occurrences and if not, wish that we can have the fortitude, maturity and resources to navigate through our situation.

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{ 8 comments… read them below or add one }

1 sister smile March 15, 2007 at 9:10 pm

The divorce thing surprises me not at all. Why? Been there, done that, got the T-shirt and promptly burned it. I have been through sudden death of cousin, parent with cancer, other parent with cancer, parent with cancer again, parent with heart attack, and (currently) terminally ill parent. None of the things I just mentioned were easy, but my divorce was by far the single most stressful event of my entire life. I lost thirty pounds that I couldn’t afford in a month, along with handfuls of hair. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

On the other hand, the long view is that it was very much for the best, and going through that experience helped me learn to cope with other stressors much better than I once did.

2 Janni March 25, 2008 at 9:01 am

Stress from financial matters for single moms can sometimes be hard to deal with. A single mom is unlikely to have help from a partner or parent. And when they are feeling overwhelmed with stress from everyday life and financial hardship there isn’t anyone there to lean on or help out.

3 Personal Bankruptcy Options May 13, 2008 at 3:37 pm

For me…I have found that there is one thing that has influenced my financial attitude more than any other…

The amount of money I have in my savings account.

I don’t know all the reasons why. But when there’s money in the account, I’m more confident in the future. And I even sleep better.

4 Amy June 16, 2008 at 9:02 am

I’m not surprised by anything mentioned in this article….I think I do need a change of career. I think I see flowers in my future. :-)

5 dean graziosi November 29, 2008 at 5:56 am

It’s interesting to me a forklift operator is one of the least stressful jobs out there. I think the more people & your personal lifestyle depend on your job’s income, the more stressful your life will be.

6 Glenn Torres June 28, 2009 at 5:35 am

Oh god! Ha ha! Just reading this list is causing me stress! It’s like a compilation of all the things one tends to worry about needlessly right before they fall asleep. I’m afraid I will be up lying awake tonight! :)

- Glenn

7 Chandler AZ September 10, 2009 at 4:07 pm

It’s great that I’m at a stage in life right now that doesn’t see much of any of these events.

8 Financial Samurai September 24, 2009 at 7:49 pm

Great post! Shouldn’t not having money be the #1 financial stress?

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