Which came first – the chicken or the egg? No one can really decide. The same goes for researchers who have been trying to decide whether debt causes mental health issues or if mental health issues cause debt – but regardless of the answer – we can all agree that debt can cause some pretty scary effects on your health!

Anxiety
Being anxious can make you feel a whole host of symptoms – a feeling of a sense of doom, heart palpitations, lack of sleep, dizziness, shortness of breath. But what we don’t realize is the long-term effects of anxiety can cause changes in behavior – becoming withdrawn, isolating one’s self from friends and loved ones. Often those living with untreated anxiety can turn to self-medicating which is usually drugs or alcohol to “relieve” the uncomfortable symptoms of anxiety.

Raises Blood Pressure
While stress from debt isn’t a direct cause of long-term high blood pressure – according to the Mayo Clinic stress and anxiety can cause your blood pressure to spike in the short term. While it isn’t good for the body and can cause other issues that damage your arteries. Continuing to spike your blood pressure through bouts of anxiety or stress can be exasperated by other unhealthy activities people use to help ignore the stress as well.

Lowers Immunity
Not only can dodging collection calls or seeing high bills make you feel sick to your stomach, stress from debt has been shown to literally lower your immune system which means more sick days. When we are stressed the immune system boosts corticosteroids naturally but they suppress the immune system making it harder for the body to fight off infection and meaning you will get sick more often.

Chronic Pain
Chronic debtors might be experiencing other chronic issues too – like chronic pain. People dealing with the stress of debt often find themselves not only less immune to illness but less immune to pain as well. We often carry our stress in our back and shoulder muscles which can cause chronic pain. It doesn’t stop there either, people under chronic stress can also experience a higher amount of chronic migraines as well.

Less Doctor’s Visits
Whether from financial stress or depression or even denial of the health issues, people that are under a lot of stress from debt typically go to the doctor less. Financially doctor’s visits can be expensive so someone under financial stress like debt might not have the money to even go to the doctor – but this could cost them later on in the way of serious health conditions like hypertension (high blood pressure), illnesses caused by a lower immune system or even just the chronic pain has become unbearable.

Getting help early on can help alleviate these health scares – not only from medical professionals but solving the root of the issue – fixing your debt situation. If you have student loan debt call the experts at My Education Solutions or take their calculator to find out instantly if you qualify for free government money through Student Loan Debt Forgiveness at www.MyEducationSolutions.com .