内容摘要：Ziv Abud talks about the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, at the Nova music festival during an interview at her house in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. Abud survived, protected by the crush of bodies above her, in a roadside bomb shelter near the Kibbutz Reim. Her boyfriend, Eliya Cohen, was taken captive. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Ziv Abud talks about the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, at the Nova music festival during an interview at her house in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. Abud survived, protected by the crush of bodies above her, in a roadside bomb shelter near the Kibbutz Reim. Her boyfriend, Eliya Cohen, was taken captive. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

, said Courtney Alev, consumer advocate at Credit Karma. Sometimes, reading too much news that can affect your finances can become overbearing and create more stress than you need.“It’s good practice to stay informed but you don’t want to let the news cycle consume you,” Alev said.

If you find yourself feeling high levels of stress or anxiety when it comes to your finances, it’s best to contact a professional who can assist you, such as a financial therapist.If looking for regular mental health services, most health insurance covers some type of mental health assistance. If you don’t have health insurance, you can look for sliding-scale therapists around the country, including through FindTreatment.gov and the Anxiety and Depression Association of America directory.Rather than worrying too much on the economics of the entire country, Alev recommends that you focus on the aspects of your personal life that you can control in order to feel more confident in case there is a recession.

“Identify any changes that you might need to make to have more of a safety net in place that could give you confidence,” Alev said.Things you can control include budgeting, creating an emergency fund and cutting unnecessary expenses.

Whether you are worried about your job security or the high prices of goods, it’s best that you sit down and reassess your budget to create an emergency fund. An emergency fund can feel unattainable if finances are already difficult, but having even a small amount of cash saved can make the difference, Alev said.

Ideally, your emergency fund should amount to three to six months of expenses.“You can see if you can get temporary forbearance or a deferment of payments for financial hardship,” she said.

State attorneys general also take inquiries from student borrowers.Jessica Fugate, a government relations manager for the city of Los Angeles, said she was a less than a year from student loan forgiveness under the Biden-era Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which forgives outstanding loans after 120 payments.

With an ongoing court challenge to her former SAVE payment plan, though, Fugate hoped to switch to an income-driven plan before Trump took office. She applied in January.“It’s the most affordable option to repay my loans while living in Los Angeles working for the government on a government salary,” said Fugate, 42. “And it would mean my payments counted towards forgiveness.”