Conquer Your Debt by Understanding Your Natural Stress Responses
The response to ongoing debt can trigger various psychological and physiological reactions, including the “fight, flight, freeze, or fawn” responses. These responses are part of the body’s natural stress response system, also known as the acute stress response, and they can be understood within the framework of how individuals cope with perceived threats or stressors, such as debt.
Money is perhaps one of the most emotive aspects of life that can trigger the “F” out of us.
Understanding your situation and how Debt Angel Solution can help you through can help you make sense of your feelings and responses towards your current financial situation; how you got here and, most importantly, how you can change it.
A Legacy of Survival
Sometimes when we are experiencing and responding to the fear, pressure, and shame of debt, we kick into one of the four F’s. These 4 Fs are not modern inventions; they are as old as humanity itself, serving as essential survival tools throughout our evolutionary history.
These instinctual reactions are not a matter of choice but are automatic and deeply rooted in our biology. While they served us well in ancient times, today they can show up in response to modern stresses, like financial problems, even though the danger isn’t physical…
Exploring the 4 Fs
Fight or flight are well-known stress responses that occur when hormones are released in your body, prompting you to stay and fight or run and flee danger. If your body perceives itself to be in trouble, your system will work to keep you alive. The fight, flight, freeze, and fawn responses are stress reactions that individuals exhibit when faced with danger or stress. Fight is the response of aggressively confronting a threat; flight involves running away from danger; freeze is the inability to move or act against a threat, and fawn is the stress response of trying to please someone to avoid conflict.
While fight, flight, and freeze are more prevalent and have been extensively documented, the fawn response is a more recently described stress reaction associated with individuals who have experienced relational trauma or complex trauma.
Fawning is a trauma response where individuals behave in a people-pleasing manner to prevent conflict and establish a sense of safety, commonly seen in trauma survivors. This response often stems from childhood abuse and can lead to negative mental health outcomes in the long term. Fawning can result from various types of trauma, such as childhood abuse, intimate partner violence, emotional neglect, bullying, or institutional abuse.
It involves behaviours like ignoring one’s needs, being overly helpful, responding to criticism with praise, and struggling to set boundaries. Seeking psychological support from trauma-informed professionals and engaging in evidence-based therapies like eye movement desensitisation therapy and trauma-focused cognitive-behavioural therapy can be beneficial for individuals experiencing fawning behaviours.
Essentially, the goal of the fight, flight, freeze, and fawn response is to decrease, end, or evade danger and return to a calm, relaxed state.
FIGHT:
In the fight response, individuals confront danger directly. This can manifest as physical confrontation or verbal assertiveness. People in this state may display behaviours such as talking over others to assert dominance, often feeling a rush of adrenaline during conflicts. They might experience difficulty with emotional regulation and may perceive criticism or disagreement as threats.
If that sounds like you, our expert team at Debt Angel Solutions will help you develop a personalised plan to tackle your debt head-on. We can fight on your behalf to negotiate with creditors, and we’ll empower you to face your financial challenges with confidence.
FLIGHT:
Flight is about escaping from a threatening situation. It often manifests as avoidance behaviour, such as immersing oneself in work to escape uncomfortable emotions like heartache. This response can also include physical behaviours like leaving a stressful situation. People in this mode are often busy and driven, possibly exhibiting symptoms of anxiety or panic attacks.
Feeling the urge to bury your head in the sand and ignore your debt is a common response, but avoidance only makes the problem worse. Debt Angel Solutions can be your guiding light out of the darkness. We’ll provide the support and guidance you need to confront your debt head-on and reclaim your financial freedom.
FREEZE:
Are you feeling paralyzed by the enormity of your debt? The freeze response involves a sort of mental and physical shutdown. This response is common in scenarios like prolonged stress or burnout, where a person may disconnect from their surroundings, retreating into passive activities for comfort.
Our compassionate team at Debt Angel Solutions will help you break free from the grip of financial paralysis. We’ll work with you to create a manageable plan that puts you back in control of your finances. Remember, there is always a way forward.
FAWN:
This response is used after an unsuccessful fight, flight, or freeze attempt and involves a strategy of appeasement in the face of threat. This response is characterised by an excessive eagerness to please and placate others, often at the expense of one’s own needs and boundaries. Are you seeking approval or validation from others to ease your financial stress? While it’s natural to seek support, it’s important to take proactive steps toward financial independence.
At Debt Angel Solutions, we’ll provide you with the tools and resources you need to stand on your own two feet and conquer your debt once and for all. Don’t let debt dictate your life any longer.
Take the first step toward a brighter financial future with Debt Angel Solutions.
Contact us today to schedule your free consultation and take control of your financial destiny. With our help, you can conquer your debt and live a life free from financial worry.
