What Is ‘Poverty Trauma’

Poverty is a fairly broad concept. It’s different for everyone. For some people, being poor means not having their own car or a housekeeper, while for others, it means living on the street. But everyone knows that poverty is a terrible situation associated with discomfort and negative emotions, and nobody really wants to experience it.

What is ‘poverty trauma’? It is an actual psychological term that describes negative effects of poverty on mental health: a feeling of financial insecurity, accompanied by severe and often prolonged stress. Only people, who have faced poverty directly or indirectly, can experience this kind of trauma.

For example, as a child, you had to wear your sibling’s old clothes and you were ashamed of your appearance. You could never invite friends to come over, because they would see how poor your family was. Or you simply never had any pocket money.

Poverty trauma can manifest itself in many different ways. Some people choose stinginess as a way of life: it’s hard for them to part even with a small amount of money because it triggers intense feelings of tension and guilt. Other people always fear to be left with nothing on their accounts, even though there are no reasons for that. Another person, on the opposite, flushes money down the drain and always ends up in debt no matter how much they make. Or they buy overly expensive things only to ‘fit in’.

Notice how these manifestations are polarized: some people dive into unreasonable limitations, while others start spending carelessly. But the reason for these distorted behaviors is the same — poverty trauma. What should you do with it? Heal it. And the good news is that you can.