When making the decision to enter recovery, finances can be a big worry. For some, your recovery budget might look very different from your previous financial situation. Recent research has shown that money management can promote substance use recovery by increasing mindfulness around financial planning, and helping to plan for unexpected financial situations. Some people find that money can be a trigger for drug use. A recovery budget can serve as a visual that helps keep you on track.
Many addiction specialists recommend starting small. Begin by making a list of all debts, assets, and monthly bills. Next, open a bank account. With the key information in front of you, you’re on the right path to making financial decisions that promote recovery.
Want to learn more? Check out these resources:
Explore: Read this article to learn more about how money management can be an important tool to promote substance use recovery.
Watch: Tom Jacobs from the Vitanova Foundation has several short videos in this playlist that help to introduce concepts like financial literacy, budgeting, and other financial steps that can help people in recovery.
Practice: Ready to develop your recovery budget? Check out this Guide to Personal Finance in Recovery, and try out one of their first steps. Additionally, check out some journaling prompts to help you reflect.
Prompts to help you understand how money affects you emotionally:
- I feel the richest in my life when…
- When I think about money I feel…
Prompts to help you take one small step in a different direction with your finances:
- In 10 years time I want to be able to afford…
- I will calculate how much money I make per day and decide a reasonable amount I can save from that total
- Prompts for the person who is learning what they value:
- Of all of my belongings, I take most care of…
- If money did not exist, I would spend my days…
Prompts for the person who hopes to renew their relationship with money:
- I would like to feel _________ about money
- The dominant emotions that come to the surface when I think about money are…