Chicago Tribune -
An onslaught of phone calls tells Richard Chaifetz all he needs to know about how Americans are handling the nation's economic plunge.
The head of ComPsych, a Chicago-based provider of mental health services, said inquiries are spiking as never before in the wake of Wall Street's tumble, the housing slide and other financial calamities. "It's led to anxiety levels I have not seen in 20 years," he said. Psychologists and other professionals across Chicago and beyond report similar worries in patients. The economic unrest has been building for months; this week's bankruptcies and bailouts simply deepened a sense of despair.
Although mental health assistance won't restore a vaporized retirement fund, experts say it can be crucial in lending perspective and hope to situations that can seem irredeemably dark. Some of the concerns follow, along with coping approaches suggested by experts.
I'VE TAKEN A HUGE HIT, AND IT FEELS LIKE THE END OF THE WORLD
"It's appropriate to be anxious," said Nancy Molitor, a Wilmette psychologist. "It's not helpful to panic. Panic disables people and renders them ineffective to cope."
Molitor said she has seen a steady stream of people who are reacting to their losses in unhelpful ways: abusing drugs and alcohol, terminating their gym memberships and gaining weight, or trying to make up their financial losses through gambling.
Equally troubling are those who try to ignore the bad news, she said. Taking action can help stave off even worse trouble down the road.
"Some people are afraid to call their broker and banker, and that's not healthy," she said. "If you're worried [about paying bills], it's very important to pick up the phone. . . . Most creditors would be very happy if they heard from you."
MY FINANCES ARE OK BUT I CAN SENSE RUIN APPROACHING
California psychologist Judith M. Bardwick wrote a book on "psychological recession," a feeling that can haunt even those who, by all impartial measures, are weathering the financial storm just fine.
"It reflects people's sense that they no longer have control over what happens to them," she said. "It's the feeling that the present is lousy and the future is worse: 'I am vulnerable, and there's no one out there to help me.' "
That can be a helpful response in moderation, if it leads to updating one's skills or seeking a more secure job. But it also may encourage paralysis, anxiety and a general dreariness that infects work and home life.
Avoiding that trap means objectively reviewing one's career and finances with the help of a respected adviser, Bardwick said. She added, though, that it will take more than a positive attitude to defeat this scourge--it will take a new commitment on the part of governments and employers to see that workers are valued and cared for.
I'M MARRIED, AND MY SPOUSE IS GOING TO BANKRUPT US
"When it comes to your relationship, you really have to [adopt] a viewpoint that there are many different ways, many different spending patterns," Geneva marriage counselor Brent Atkinson said. "The biggest mistake you're going to make is your way is right and your partner is wrong."
Atkinson said husbands or wives shouldn't back off if they believe spouses are making truly disastrous financial decisions, but they shouldn't make their concerns personal or vindictive.
"If you look at the actual data on how relationships work, what you find is widely differing ideas about ways to handle money don't impact the marriage," he said. "Two savers can have a terrible marriage."
I HAVE TO POSTPONE RETIREMENT, AND I FEEL BETRAYED
"When that desire to retire is frustrated, there's a sense of losing control over your destiny," said Dr. Sandra Swantek, a geriatric psychiatrist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. "But the other issue for the 50-plus person is, 'Will I be able to hold onto my job long enough?' "
The dark thoughts stemming from those realities can be subdued by conversation with friends and family members, Swantek said, but more serious signs--diminished energy, weight loss, scant interest in normally pleasurable activities--should prompt a visit to the doctor.
Physicians can refer patients to psychiatrists and other professionals, and those who can't afford private treatment can go to community mental health centers, which charge on a sliding scale, she said.
jkeilman@tribune.com
-----
To see more of the Chicago Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.chicagotribune.com.
The head of ComPsych, a Chicago-based provider of mental health services, said inquiries are spiking as never before in the wake of Wall Street's tumble, the housing slide and other financial calamities. "It's led to anxiety levels I have not seen in 20 years," he said. Psychologists and other professionals across Chicago and beyond report similar worries in patients. The economic unrest has been building for months; this week's bankruptcies and bailouts simply deepened a sense of despair.
Although mental health assistance won't restore a vaporized retirement fund, experts say it can be crucial in lending perspective and hope to situations that can seem irredeemably dark. Some of the concerns follow, along with coping approaches suggested by experts.
I'VE TAKEN A HUGE HIT, AND IT FEELS LIKE THE END OF THE WORLD
"It's appropriate to be anxious," said Nancy Molitor, a Wilmette psychologist. "It's not helpful to panic. Panic disables people and renders them ineffective to cope."
Molitor said she has seen a steady stream of people who are reacting to their losses in unhelpful ways: abusing drugs and alcohol, terminating their gym memberships and gaining weight, or trying to make up their financial losses through gambling.
Equally troubling are those who try to ignore the bad news, she said. Taking action can help stave off even worse trouble down the road.
"Some people are afraid to call their broker and banker, and that's not healthy," she said. "If you're worried [about paying bills], it's very important to pick up the phone. . . . Most creditors would be very happy if they heard from you."
MY FINANCES ARE OK BUT I CAN SENSE RUIN APPROACHING
California psychologist Judith M. Bardwick wrote a book on "psychological recession," a feeling that can haunt even those who, by all impartial measures, are weathering the financial storm just fine.
"It reflects people's sense that they no longer have control over what happens to them," she said. "It's the feeling that the present is lousy and the future is worse: 'I am vulnerable, and there's no one out there to help me.' "
That can be a helpful response in moderation, if it leads to updating one's skills or seeking a more secure job. But it also may encourage paralysis, anxiety and a general dreariness that infects work and home life.
Avoiding that trap means objectively reviewing one's career and finances with the help of a respected adviser, Bardwick said. She added, though, that it will take more than a positive attitude to defeat this scourge--it will take a new commitment on the part of governments and employers to see that workers are valued and cared for.
I'M MARRIED, AND MY SPOUSE IS GOING TO BANKRUPT US
"When it comes to your relationship, you really have to [adopt] a viewpoint that there are many different ways, many different spending patterns," Geneva marriage counselor Brent Atkinson said. "The biggest mistake you're going to make is your way is right and your partner is wrong."
Atkinson said husbands or wives shouldn't back off if they believe spouses are making truly disastrous financial decisions, but they shouldn't make their concerns personal or vindictive.
"If you look at the actual data on how relationships work, what you find is widely differing ideas about ways to handle money don't impact the marriage," he said. "Two savers can have a terrible marriage."
I HAVE TO POSTPONE RETIREMENT, AND I FEEL BETRAYED
"When that desire to retire is frustrated, there's a sense of losing control over your destiny," said Dr. Sandra Swantek, a geriatric psychiatrist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. "But the other issue for the 50-plus person is, 'Will I be able to hold onto my job long enough?' "
The dark thoughts stemming from those realities can be subdued by conversation with friends and family members, Swantek said, but more serious signs--diminished energy, weight loss, scant interest in normally pleasurable activities--should prompt a visit to the doctor.
Physicians can refer patients to psychiatrists and other professionals, and those who can't afford private treatment can go to community mental health centers, which charge on a sliding scale, she said.
jkeilman@tribune.com
-----
To see more of the Chicago Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.chicagotribune.com.
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