SoFi Blog

Ignoring a problem in the hopes that it’ll go away can feel very appealing on the surface. But while engrossing one’s self in the latest TV drama might be a good distraction, it isn’t actually going to resolve anything. This is especially true when it comes to student loan debt. If you pretend it doesn’t actually exist, you’re not going to make it disappear, and you may even make it worse.

If student loan stress is causing you to lose sleep, you’re not alone. Stress from debt can have an impact on some people’s mental health. A 2017 report found that 80% of working professionals with student loans claimed that their debt was a ‘significant’ or ‘very significant’ stressor in their lives.

A great way to potentially counter stress from debt is to craft an action plan to get ahead of your debt. Help take charge of your student debt with these five tips.

Millions of Americans are facing the realities of living with debt, as it continues to rise with record-breaking speed. High education costs, home loans, and rising credit card debt mean that most young families are juggling kids, career, and debt. For many, that balancing act quickly becomes overwhelming, with stress about bills and financial health eating away at their overall quality of life.

As debt rates rise, so do concerns about how debt and financial anxiety may impact mental and physical health. Feeling panicky about getting another bill in the mail and lightheaded when you see your account balance drop after your monthly student loan payment aren’t just symptoms of being a millennial, they may actually be symptoms of debt.

Research shows that your balance owed can negatively impact your sense of well-being, potentially causing a variety of emotional and physical issues. The bottom line is that the more stressed you are about debt and finances, the worse you’re probably going to feel overall, both physically and mentally.

The holidays are a time for families to get together and share joy and thankfulness. But they’re also a time for mom or dad to probe their adult children about all kinds of “fun” topics like who they’re dating, when those grandkids will be on the way, when they’re going back to school for that master’s degree, and—you guessed it—how they’re dealing with money.

We wanted to learn more about the conversations parents have with their adult children around money, so we surveyed 1,003 parents in the United States—ages 36 to 65—during the month of November, and found some surprising results.

What’s Happening In The Market?

As you’re probably aware by now, the stock market has been fluctuating over the past few days. Some say it’s because trade tensions have ratcheted up between the U.S. and China. Others cite that the Fed is expected to hike rates again at its December meeting. Stock analysts note many tech behemoths like Netflix have missed earnings expectations. But, the cause is likely a mix of many factors.

It turns out, current valuation metrics seem in-line with historical averages and the global economy remains in good shape, irrespective of what is the risk du jour. The enthusiasm that surrounded international companies early in the year was likely a little too rosy when stock markets performed well, and the recent pessimism that has driven stocks lower is likely a tad overblown. It comes down to the fact that there are always risks and rewards, so it’s important to keep them in context.

It’s well documented that student loans are a big source of stress among graduates. For those carrying the 1.34 trillion dollars in student loan debt currently totaled in the U.S., the burden causes strain in ways you might be able to predict—loss of sleep, anxiety—and in some ways that are surprising.

According to a recent SoFi member survey of over 1,200 respondents with student loan debt, the lion’s share of respondents confirmed how student loan stress impacts mental health. Eighty three percent shared that they’ve felt like they couldn’t relax due to the burden of the debt, and a full fifty percent felt that dealing with student loan debt has caused them to feel depressed. Over a third of respondents have reported actually losing sleep due to student loan debt, and a large number noted that it’s caused them to miss out on opportunities to travel, promote self care, and make major life decisions.