🖥 Click here to view the Zoom recording with full transcript and chat messages.
🔐 Passcode: D!mes@ma1

In our Ask Me Anything Session, together with Financial Trauma Coach and Therapist, Stephanie Olano,  we explored the intersection of navigating financial anxiety, healing from first-gen financial trauma and money, and boundaries with loved ones. She discussed overcoming imposter syndrome, authenticity struggles, and financial trauma, particularly for first-gen individuals.

In this session, we discussed:

10:12 - How can I break down steps to understanding my spending without it feeling overwhelming?

17: 20 - How do you overcome the fear of actually looking at your budget? And then once you do, how do you not shut down from overwhelm?

23:45 - Traditional budgeting apps don’t work for my brain- I forget to check them, and they stress me out. Are there neurodivergent-friendly ways to track money without feeling trapped?

27:24 - I have so many competing financial priorities – debt, saving, investing, supporting family – how do I even decide what to focus on first?

31:08 - I hyperfocus on my finances in short bursts, but then I burn out and ignore money tasks for months. How do I build consistency without feeling drained?

36:26 - I either hoard money out of fear or impulse-spend when I’m stressed. How can I find a middle ground that actually works for me?

42:58 - I grew up with a scarcity mindset, and now I struggle to actually enjoy my money. How do I let myself spend without guilt?

45:40 - What advice might you have for individuals grappling with existential ideas around time and the meaning of life while trying to balance financial responsibilities and demands, which may lead to Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA)?

• For instance, having this trait might make someone feel less urgency around financial debt or savings goals because they are seeing other possibilities for being and beyond money. At the same time, financial debt and stress might be hurting them incrementally and preventing them from living the life they long for. 

• What are ways we can cope with these conflicting ideas and continue to show up for ourselves and our loved ones and communities?

 💌 Get in touch with Stephanie

• Love her like we do? Learn more about Stephanie here.

• Stephanie’s IGs: Awkward Money & Todos Therapy

• Stephanie’s Interest Form for 1:1 work

🥧 Resources shared by attendees in the chat

• Goblin - an AI tool that helps break down overwhelming tasks to a level of detail that feels right for you

• Stardust - period tracker that syncs cycles with lunar phases

• Two wonderful Accredited Financial Counselors(AFC*) in our network: Gabriella Cerezo & Bethel Habte.

  *AFCs help people achieve financial well-being by providing guidance and support in areas like budgeting, debt management, saving, and financial planning, focusing on building sustainable financial foundations.