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Financial therapy is a new and growing area of financial assistance.
Whereas financial advisors and financial planners consult on how to invest, protect and grow money, financial therapists address the more human side of personal finances. They help clients work on the underlying emotional issues that keep them trapped in money struggles, be it overspending, under-saving or carrying too much debt.
There are many factors influencing our relationship with money including how our parents handled money, our own early experiences and mistakes, and our beliefs. Financial therapy can help clients examine their unfinished emotional business around money, allowing them to have a healthier relationship with it.
It delves into the past to help clients adjust the core beliefs underlying their behavior with money.
Financial therapists are mental health practitioners. They have had years of study and supervised practice, and have passed a licensing exam.
Financial therapists shouldn’t be confused with financial coaches. Both aim to assist people with financial issues and habits. Coaching, however, focuses more on the present and the future. It concentrates on the client’s current goals, and helps the client overcome blockages and obstructions to achieve more than he would alone. Financial coaches have also received training, but not as extensive as therapists. They are not health practitioners.
Neither financial therapists nor coaches can provide investment advice unless they are also registered as an investment advisor with the SEC or their state.
Could you use some help sorting out your money concerns? The article “Do You Need a Therapist or a Coach” by Bill Cole, provides a good overview of the similarities and differences between financial therapists and coaches, including a list of nine signs that one needs a therapist. Click here to read this article.
For advice on selecting a financial therapist, the article “Here’s How to Know If You Need a Financial Therapist” by Kate Ashford offers some advice. Click here to connect to this article.
To learn more about financial therapy or to locate a financial therapist, visit the Financial Therapy Association at www.financialtherapyassociation.org.
To learn more about financial coaching or to find a financial coach, visit the Association for Financial Counseling and Planning Education at www.afcpe.org.
This blog is published to provide you with general information only, and is not intended to provide specific or comprehensive advice.  Money Care, LLC encourages individuals to seek advice from competent professionals when appropriate.


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