A financial hardship can bring extreme emotional trauma as it threatens one’s survival, safety and sense of belonging. Professional financial therapists help people understand the emotional concerns associated with money management problems.

It’s a good thing there are ways to take back control of your own emotions, as well as your money, by considering the following tips:

1. Confront guilt and shame. Both of these feelings are very common when people make big financial mistakes, like racking up huge credit card debt. Some people pay that they have been a great failure.

While many people go to great lengths to prevent others from finding out about their financial situation, simply admitting financial failure to someone can be liberating. Often this admission is enough to start letting go of shame. Talking to a financial planner can be very helpful.

2. Focus on behavior. Some people who have been through difficult financial situations rebuke certain financial tools and swear never to use them again. For example, a person who has accumulated credit card debt might decide not to use a credit card anymore. But the card is not the problem, it is the use of the credit card that gets people into big trouble. In fact, if used wisely, credit cards could even save people money through purchase protection, rewards, and other bonuses. A good solution to this is to modify your behavior so that financial products do not become a curse but a great blessing.

3. Take responsibility. It is essential to take a close look at the factors that caused the problem. Other people’s actions or even bad luck could have played a part, however, in most cases, there were times when one could have altered the course of events. Perhaps you took shortcuts or unreasonable risks, or gave in to the desire for material things or social pressure.

Once you acknowledge any role you have played in the development of your financial problems, you can empower yourself to achieve a better future. If your own choices were powerful enough to ruin your finances, they are also powerful enough to improve and fix them.

4. Develop new clothes. It’s not enough to simply say you’re going to alter your money behavior. To cope with financial difficulties, some habits must be changed or eliminated. This will pay off emotionally and financially. Implementing certain rules, like saving 10% or 15% of your monthly salary or paying your credit card bills in full every month, will go a long way and create a safety net that will make you feel significantly less worried if financial difficulties arise again.