[Michelle]

You make sense. For me it has been a struggle to develop healthy financial habits, simply due to the way I was raised.

Growing up, money was power. People who had money were to be feared, respected, hated, and admired simultaneously. My parents bought and bought and bought, putting themselves deep into debt and finally filing for bankruptcy a few years ago.

My move to Switzerland has been instrumental in becoming healthy as an individual. And while I have avoided the debt trap, there is still no flow of money in my life, and the feeling that money is power still exists. I find myself searching shops for what I can only guess is some sense of fulfillment or self-worth.

Wah.