So much of this article hit home. The pushing-away is what I think of as "It Must Be Nice" Syndrome.
My parents, whom I adore, also frustrate the hell out of me because they have such terrible attitudes about money-- I mean, it's blatantly obvious that they're driving away any chance of the prosperity they say they want.
My mom's eternal refrain has always been "it must be nice", and *always* said in a voice that drips with bitterness and resentment. One friend gets a new car-- "it must be nice..." Someone else goes on the vacation she always wanted to take-- "it must be nice..." Another friend gets a massage a couple of times a month-- "it must be nice"!
What horrified me most was the first time I was aware of that awful phrase coming out of my *own* mouth. I think I literally clapped my hand over my mouth like I could stuff those words back in! After that I started policing myself ruthlessly-- any time those words tried to bubble up, stamping on them and consciously replacing it with "that's great news!" or "hey, that must be nice-- so I should try it out!"
I started challenging my mom. She'd say, "So-and-so got a manicure. It must be nice to afford things like that!" and I'd say, "Yes, it really is, so why don't you treat yourself to one?" Of course, that would prompt the litany of excuses...sigh. But, I keep trying. And continuing to work on my own re-programming when it comes to money.
I got past resenting rich people and thinking money was dirty or evil; what I seem to keep getting stuck on is a) believing that what I really love has monetary value, and b) this persistent, weird mindset I have in which money is controlled by some amorphous authority figure who doles it out fairly stingily and will take it away if you don't keep constantly proving you deserve it. I never literally had money taken away from me for not doing what I was supposed to, so I don't know quite where that particular bogey came from. All I know is that financial misfortune feels like a punishment, and if there was a punishment, it feels I must've done something to deserve it. Argh!! Demons, begone!
(I really don't act like an abused child in other areas of my life, I swear!!)