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Economic Crisis Causing Undue Stress In Americans

Economic Crisis Causing Undue Stress In Americans

The economic crisis is affecting more than just Wall Street's pocketbooks.

It's also having a deep emotional impact on consumers.


The market meltdown has people worried and stressed.

People all over the country, including New Mexicans, are itching to talk about it.

From Chicago, where legal secretary Ana Gomez works, to Albuquerque, where boutique owner Irene Jack drops makes her livelihood, stress over the economy is affecting many people.

"You go to be thinking about this and you wake up in the middle of the night," Gomez said.

"It worries me, it stresses me out. I own a small business so that's a concern as well," Jack said.

Wall Street is hundreds of miles from where the two women live, but they said it's not far from their minds.

The American Psychological Association said the economy is causing significant stress in nearly two-thirds of Americans.

Experts said this stress takes its toll on mental and physical health.

A 2001 study cites debt as a cause of depression.

Another says money fuels worry and can lead to addiction and obesity.

But in Albuquerque, that doesn't apply to everybody.

"The stock market doesn't affect me at all," truck dispatcher Sean Aguilar-Thomas said. "I don't have any investments, no capital gains at all."

If you are feeling stressed out by money worries, life coach Martha Beck has some tips.

She said you should talk to someone, preferably your spouse.

Keeping the lines of communication open and honest will be a huge factor in managing both the problem and the stress.

As for you kids, don't lie to them.

Kids tend to blame themselves for their parents' stress, and may think they have no one to turn to to tell them the truth.

Beck recommends sitting your kids down and telling them things are really complicated and pretty scary, but reassure them, it's all going to be OK.