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When Debt Feels Heavy
- Mary Claire
- May 26
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 3
We don’t really talk about Debt.
Sure, we might hear numbers and strategies, balance transfers, snowball methods, side hustles, but we rarely talk about what it feels like to owe money. To carry it around like an invisible weight that quietly colors everything: how we see ourselves, how we spend our time, how we dream (or stop dreaming).
Debt can feel like a secret. One you have to manage alone. It's hard to admit how much you owe, not just to others, but to yourself. Scared that if you look too closely, you'd find confirmation of all the things you feared were true. Maybe that's being irresponsible. That you failed. That you would never catch up.
If any of this feels familiar, you are so far from alone.
And that’s why I created something that I couldn’t find when I needed it: A space not to fix debt, but to feel through it. To make room for the emotional reality of debt, not just the financial one.
What We’re Really Carrying with Debt
Debt doesn’t live in a vacuum. It's tied to real things—like survival, emergencies, past trauma, education, caregiving, underemployment, or sometimes just life happening faster than we can keep up. But somewhere along the way, debt becomes more than a financial burden. It becomes personal.
We internalize it. We make it about our identity. And we carry not just the number, but also:
The shame that keeps us quiet
The fear that keeps us stuck
The guilt that tells us we “should have known better”
The stories we inherit about what success looks like
It’s a lot. And it deserves to be unpacked with tenderness.
Why Emotionally Processing Debt Matters
The truth is: you can’t budget your way out of emotional overwhelm. You can’t spreadsheet your way through shame. If the emotional side of debt isn’t acknowledged, it’ll keep hijacking your thoughts, whether that looks like avoidance, panic, compulsive spending, or burnout from trying to “do better” without ever feeling better.
That’s where the Debt Processing Journal comes in.
It’s not a tool for financial planning. It’s a space for emotional reflection. A quiet, judgment-free container for asking:
What’s my money story?
What beliefs did I grow up with around debt or self-worth?
How do I actually feel about my current financial reality?
Where can I offer myself more compassion and less criticism?
It’s Not About Perfect—It’s About Peace
Your journey with debt is still unfolding. But I can tell you this: The moment you stop trying to hate yourself into change and start offering yourself some grace, everything shifts.
And I want that for you.
If you’re ready to feel lighter, even before the numbers change, if you’re ready to make space for clarity, truth, and tenderness, I invite you to explore the Debt Processing Journal. It’s not a magic solution. But it is a meaningful start.
You deserve to feel safe in your own mind again.
You deserve to believe you are more than the bills you carry.
And you deserve a space to process, at your own pace, with your whole heart.
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