🌧️ How I’m Managing My Money During a Heavy Season

I want to share something honestly.

When life feels heavy, my money feels it too.

This past month has been one of those seasons where everything feels louder: the news, the emotions, the conversations, the weight of what’s happening in the world. And I noticed it showing up very clearly in my finances.

Not in some dramatic way.

But in small, human ways.

I spent more on food.
More on convenience.
More on ease.

And at first, the finance-coach part of my brain kicked in: This wasn’t the plan. This wasn’t the spending commitment.

But another part of me, the human part, reminded me: You’re not broken. You’re coping.

I share this because I know I’m not alone in it.

We don’t make financial decisions in a vacuum.
We make them when we’re tired.
When we’re scared.
When we’re grieving.
When we’re overwhelmed.

And in those moments, money often becomes a tool for comfort or relief not because we’re irresponsible, but because we’re trying to feel okay.

For me, food is one of the ways I cope.
I eat when I’m happy.
I eat when I’m sad.
I eat when I don’t quite know what else to do.

And instead of shaming myself for that this month, I paused and asked:
Do I actually need correction right now or do I need compassion?

The answer was compassion.

Because here’s the thing:
We’ve built real financial safety in our lives.

Our investments are on track.
Our long-term plan is solid.
One month of choosing ease doesn’t undo years of intentional work.

So I let myself have the ease. And I paid attention to how I talked to myself along the way.

That’s what I want you to hear most.

The work isn’t never spending emotionally.
The work is noticing it and how long it takes you to come back to yourself.

I think about this as a rebound period.
The time between a dysregulated moment and a regulated one.

That’s why weekly money dates matter so much to me.
Not because every week is perfect, but because within seven days, I have a place to land.

A place to reflect.
A place to say: This is how I was feeling. This is how it showed up. This is how I want to move forward.

If you’re in a heavy season right now, I want you to hear this clearly:

You don’t need to optimize your way through stress.
You don’t need to punish yourself into better habits.
You don’t need to “do better” to deserve grace.

Sometimes the most financially responsible thing you can do
is take care of yourself first and trust the systems you’ve already built.

Your next money date doesn’t need to fix everything.
It just needs to help you come back into relationship with your money.

I’m right there with you.

Always.