Episode Overview

In this episode, I explore the often-overlooked connection between trauma responses and our financial behaviours. By examining how fight, flight, freeze and fawn manifest in our relationship with money, I uncover the deeper patterns that shape our financial decisions—often without us even realising it.

Key Highlights

Understanding Financial Trauma

• Financial trauma can be passed down through generations via family stories, belief systems and behaviours
• Research suggests traumatic experiences, including financial stress, can affect gene expression
• Environmental factors (current economic climate, news) shape our financial behaviours and attitudes
• Trauma doesn't only refer to major events—it's any experience that exceeds our capacity to cope
• The key difference between stress and trauma: stress can motivate action while trauma can shut down our ability to act

The Four Trauma Responses in Money Behaviours

1. Fight Response

• Characteristics: Anger, aggression, confrontation, desire for control
• Financial manifestations:
  • Aggressive pursuit of money at the expense of wellbeing
  • Defensiveness or anger during money conversations
  • High-risk investment strategies without proper research
  • Confrontational behaviour around spending habits
  • Competitive approach to financial status
  • Resistance to accepting financial help from others

2. Flight Response

• Characteristics: Avoiding responsibilities, burying head in the sand
• Financial manifestations:
  • Avoiding money conversations or opening bank statements
  • Procrastinating on financial decisions
  • Changing the subject when money comes up
  • Setting up financial systems but not following through
  • Overspending and impulsive shopping as emotional escape
  • Ignoring financial problems until they become overwhelming

3. Freeze Response

• Characteristics: Becoming stuck, rigid, unable to take action
• Financial manifestations:
  • Inability to make financial decisions
  • Leaving money in low-interest accounts for years
  • Complete inability to ask for pay rises or raise prices
  • Staying stuck in financially abusive situations
  • Excessive hoarding or saving from fear of insecurity
  • Avoiding spending money even on necessities

4. Fawn Response

• Characteristics: People-pleasing to avoid conflict or rejection
• Financial manifestations:
  • Undercharging for services
  • Staying in unfulfilling jobs to please others
  • Taking on clients who can't afford your rates
  • Lending money when you can't afford to
  • Paying for others at your own expense
  • Prioritising others' financial needs over your own

The Brain Science Behind Money Trauma

• The amygdala processes emotions like fear and anxiety during financial stress
• The hippocampus affects learning, memory and cognitive processing
• The prefrontal cortex impacts decision-making, planning and impulse control
• Regulating the nervous system helps all these brain regions function better

Moving Forward from Financial Trauma

• Awareness is the first step—simply noticing when you're in a trauma response
• Put healthy financial boundaries in place
• Learn to regulate your nervous system through breathwork and movement
• Have compassion for these protective responses
• Take small steps rather than trying to overhaul everything at once
• Remember: these responses are not who you are—just patterns in your nervous system

Final Thought

Trauma responses are not who you are—they're patterns in your nervous system that developed to keep you safe. As you bring awareness to these patterns, you create space for new, more empowered financial behaviours to emerge.

Chapters

00:00 Understanding Financial Trauma and Its Impact

06:09 Defining Trauma in the Context of Money

11:42 Exploring the Fight Response to Money

16:05 The Flight Response: Avoidance and Procrastination

20:26 The Freeze Response: Paralysis in Financial Decisions

24:44 Fawning: The People-Pleasing Money Response

28:09 Recognizing and Healing Trauma Responses

Resources:

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Come to our wealth awakening retreat

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Previous episodes on Money Trauma:

https://catherinemorgan.com/podcastarchive/the-psychological-impact-of-money-trauma/

https://catherinemorgan.com/podcastarchive/10-steps-to-overcome-your-money-trauma/

https://catherinemorgan.com/podcastarchive/financial-coaching-can-help-you-heal-money-trauma/

https://catherinemorgan.com/podcastarchive/what-is-financial-trauma-2/

https://catherinemorgan.com/podcastarchive/the-signs-of-financial-trauma/