How to not let unemployment ruin your finances
Unemployment is generally a part of your life where nothing is fair. In the three months I was unemployed this year, my rent went up, my stress levels rocketed while my motivation plummeted and, to top it all off, I put on weight. Some god, up there in the heavens, was obviously having a rotten time of it and decided the best way to relieve their feelings was to make my life a misery.
It’s not a hard leap to make- unemployment does terrible things to your self-esteem and sense of worth and some of us (me, me, me) deal with those feelings by allowing ourselves to become physically unhealthy as well as mentally down in the dumps. Forbes has an article this week about the links between unemployment and weight gain.
Meghan Casserly suggests three reasons why we tend to put on weight when we lose our jobs- bruised self-esteem, a more sedentary lifestyle and less money to spend on food and the gym.
Self-esteem isn’t that hard to understand. A large part of our identity is caught up in what we do, and doing it well, so losing a job does tend to give your idea of self-worth a bit of a battering. On top of that, you don’t really have anywhere to go during the day. You can spend 10 hours a day job hunting on the laptop, but if you’re anything like me, that ten hours will be broken up every fifteen minutes to at Tina Wafers and to slowly try and preserve myself through caffeine.
With the sudden loss of income, you’re also unlikely to shelve out for organic, healthy food and are instead more likely to buy Maccas because, after all, it’s as cheap as chips. Cheaper food will generally have higher calories and less nutrients, and will probably be high GI meaning you crash and burn within about 60 nanoseconds of consumption.
So what are some tricks to stay healthy and trim throughout this period of enforced downtime?
Don’t eat crap
This is as important for your mental wellbeing as it is for your waistline. Two independent studies have now proven that people who eat a Mediterranean diet have 30% less depression than people who eat other foods. You are what your eat, and if you are eating good, nutritious food, you’ll be happier.
Don’t eat all the time
Stick to meal times. Just because you’re unemployed doesn’t mean your life is an empty vacuum. There is lots to do, so fill your day with tasks and eat your meals at regular times.
Don’t ditch the gym right away
Cost-cutting often means the gym membership is instantaneously out the door, but before you call to cancel, try and think of another place you could possibly save money. The gym has lots of attributes that is a perfect antidote to an unemployment slump- it gets you out of the house, gets you socializing and keeps you feeling happy through exercise endorphins.
Use the time
Being unemployed is horrible- there’s no way around it. You’re not going to enjoy sunning yourself, or catching up on the entire works of Tolstoy. It’s a stressful period. But, with a bit of structure, you do have more time to cook healthy meals and exercise. Just devoting a couple of hours to it a day will have you looking healthy and feeling happy.
Have you ever been unemployed? How did you stay healthy and happy?
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