CBT · Anxiety
Financial Anxiety Worksheet
Separate the feeling from the facts and take the smallest look-at-it move
About this worksheet
Money anxiety usually runs on avoidance. The client feels dread without looking at the numbers, and the avoidance keeps the dread accurate — the situation grows worse in the dark. This worksheet separates the anxious feeling from what the client actually knows, surfaces what specifically has been avoided (unopened statements, unpaid bills, unread tax notices), names the money story the client inherited ('money is scarce', 'money corrupts', 'people with money are ___', 'talking about money is vulgar'), notices how that story shows up in current behavior (chronic overwork, hiding purchases, freezing on decisions, avoiding help), and lands on the smallest look-at-it move for the week. Not 'get out of debt' — 'open the app', 'read the statement', 'list the amount owed'. Small enough that avoidance doesn't get to veto it.
When to use it
- Debt anxiety, especially clients who avoid opening statements or app notifications.
- Income instability, freelance / gig / commission-based clients.
- Tax avoidance and tax-related shame.
- Post-layoff distress and severance-runway anxiety.
- Inherited money shame — clients whose money story predates any of their choices.
- Financial trauma from childhood scarcity, medical debt, divorce, or fraud.
How to use it
- 1Rate before and after
Anxiety usually drops after the sheet, even before any external change — naming the situation reduces the load. The rating makes that visible.
- 2Separate known from avoided
Two columns. The avoided column is the work; the known column shows the client they aren't starting from zero.
- 3The inherited story
'What did I learn about money at home?' Almost always generates material the client hasn't named before, and it usually explains the current behavior.
- 4Smallest look-at-it move
Under 10 minutes. Opening the banking app counts. The point is to break avoidance in a way small enough that avoidance can't win.
Frequently asked questions
Isn't this a financial planning problem, not a therapy problem?+
Both. The worksheet handles the anxiety and avoidance layer that stops clients from doing the financial planning. Refer to a financial adviser, credit counsellor, or hardship program for the numbers side — the sheet has a field for that referral.
How is this different from a general anxiety worksheet?+
It targets the specific avoidance-fed loop money anxiety runs on. Generic anxiety strategies (relaxation, thought records) don't move it much until the avoidance breaks.
What about clients whose situation is objectively dire?+
Then the worksheet becomes triage plus dignity. Naming the reality, taking the smallest concrete step, and asking for help are the interventions available; the sheet supports all three without pretending anxiety is the whole problem.
Is this worksheet free?+
Yes. Free printable PDF. Sign in to TherapistAssist to send as a secure client link.
Related worksheets
Worksheet — Financial Anxiety Worksheet — provided by TherapistAssist for clinical use. Not a substitute for assessment or treatment.