Money dysmorphia.
In plain English
Money dysmorphia is a distorted perception of your own financial situation, where how you feel about your money is out of step with what the numbers say. It can run either way: feeling broke and anxious despite stable finances and savings, or feeling flush and safe despite debt and no cushion. Comparison, especially the curated wealth shown on social media, feeds it. Because decisions follow the perception rather than the reality, the distortion can drive both needless deprivation and reckless overspending.
01Why it matters
When the feeling about your money drifts from the facts, decisions follow the feeling, so recognizing money dysmorphia is the first step to anchoring choices to your actual numbers rather than a distorted sense of them.
02The math, step by step
A person with a solid income, savings, and no debt still feels perpetually behind and broke after scrolling through others' apparent wealth, so they either deprive themselves needlessly or overspend to catch up. The numbers say fine; the perception says otherwise, and the perception drives the choices.
03What this is NOT
It is not the same as accurately seeing that money is tight. Money dysmorphia is a gap between perception and the numbers, feeling broke when you are fine or safe when you are not, so the fix starts with checking the actual figures.
04Receipts
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