A Note From Shannah
"I called it busy.
It was terror."
On folding ATM receipts into tiny paper cranes so I wouldn't have to read them — while simultaneously knowing plenty about money.
Financial Therapy for Women
You know what to do. So why doesn't money feel any better?
I help women change the fear, shame and old rules underneath their financial decisions — because knowing the "right" answer and actually feeling able to do it are two very different things.
Shannah Game
CFP® + CFT™
20+ Years in Money
Virtual Sessions
Being smart was never the issue.
The numbers are real. So are the feelings underneath them.
01 / Under the Money
What is financial therapy for women?
Financial therapy helps you understand and change the emotions, beliefs, relationships and learned patterns affecting your money decisions.
It brings the financial facts and the human experience into the same room. We can talk about the number, the decision and the real-life context — and then look underneath it.
What does that money moment mean? What does it threaten? What does it promise? And why does the same response keep taking over even when you know better?
The goal isn't to make you perfectly calm around money. It's to help you recognize the pattern sooner, understand what it's trying to do and build a response that fits the life you're living now.
Financial therapy, plainly:
Financial therapy combines financial knowledge with emotional and behavioral
work. It helps you understand how your experiences, beliefs, relationships
and emotions influence how you earn, spend, save and make financial decisions.
The numbers are real.
The emotions are real.
We work with both.
Why smart, capable women still struggle with money
Being smart was never the issue.
Money avoidance doesn't always look careless. Sometimes it looks incredibly responsible.
It looks like researching every possible option, revising the spreadsheet again, waiting until you're absolutely sure or working harder because more money keeps promising a feeling of safety it never quite delivers.
01
You make good money and still feel one wrong move away from losing it.
02
You know the numbers, but opening the account or making the decision brings up everything.
03
You take care of everyone financially and keep moving yourself to the bottom of the list.
04
You overwork because more money keeps promising a safety it never quite delivers.
05
You swing between rigid control and "I don't want to think about it" spending.
06
You've outgrown the old rules but don't quite trust yourself to write new ones yet.
How the work moves
What does a financial therapist do?
We don't stop at "I know why I do this." We take what you understand and bring it into an actual money moment.
01 / NAME IT
Name the charged moment
The decision, conversation, number, boundary or behavior that keeps getting loud.
02 / FIND IT
Find the rule underneath
We look at beliefs, family messages, identity, fear, guilt, safety and success stories.
03 / TRY IT
Try a different response
An ask, pause, price, payment, boundary, conversation or decision — something real.
04 / KEEP IT
Build something repeatable
We turn what you learned into language and personal money rules you can come back to.
Same money. Different job.
Financial therapist, financial planner or psychotherapist?
The right support depends on the problem you're actually trying to solve.
01 / FINANCIAL THERAPIST
Works with the pattern underneath the decision.
Money beliefs, emotions, behavior, family messages, identity, relationship dynamics and the gap between knowing and doing.
02 / FINANCIAL PLANNER
Builds strategy around the financial numbers.
Cash flow, retirement, insurance, investments, taxes, goals and a coordinated financial plan, depending on the engagement.
03 / LICENSED THERAPIST
Diagnoses or treats mental-health concerns.
Clinical assessment and mental-health treatment within the therapist's professional license.
I'm Shannah Game, CFP®, CFT™ — a Certified Financial Therapist™ Professional
and CFP® professional, not a licensed mental-health therapist. My private work
is educational, behavioral and financial in nature. It is not psychotherapy,
investment management, tax advice or legal advice.
Working Together
Start with fit — not pressure.
You don't need to know exactly what you need before we talk.
You don't need to organize every account, build a spreadsheet or decide how long you're going to work with me.
Start with a short conversation about what's happening.
Start Here · Complimentary
15-Minute Financial Therapy Fit Call
Tell me a little about what feels hard around money right now. I'll answer questions about how financial therapy works and we'll decide whether working together feels like the right next step.
- Tell me what's going on
- Ask your questions
- See if we're a good fit
- No giant intake or financial homework required
Ongoing financial therapy: $225 / 60 minutes
Available weekly or every other week.
Your Financial Therapist
I understand the numbers. I'm interested in what happens underneath them.
I'm Shannah Game — a CFP®, Certified Financial Therapist™ Professional, Certified Trauma of Money Specialist, MBA, author and lifelong entrepreneur.
I've spent more than 20 years at the intersection of money, behavior, education and real life.
I also know the strange disconnect between expertise and experience. I once folded ATM receipts into tiny paper cranes so I wouldn't have to read them. I called it busy. It was terror.
That gap between what we know and what we feel is where this work begins.
20+
years in money
28M+
podcast downloads
CFP®
financial expertise
CFT™
Certified Financial Therapist
View my Certified Financial Therapist™ credential ↗ Meet Shannah →
Questions Your Brain Is Already Asking
Let's not make you wonder.
What is financial therapy for women?
Financial therapy helps women understand and change the emotions, beliefs, relationship dynamics and learned patterns affecting their money decisions. It brings financial knowledge and the human side of money into the same conversation. It isn't simply budgeting advice, and it isn't automatically psychotherapy.
What can I talk about with a financial therapist?
You can bring the money situation that keeps feeling charged: earning, spending, saving, debt shame, financial anxiety, emotional spending, caregiving, partnership, business income, career change, success, enoughness or a decision you keep avoiding.
Can financial therapy help with money anxiety?
Yes. Financial therapy can help you understand what activates anxiety around earning, spending, saving, debt, success or financial decisions. We look at what the pattern may be protecting and work toward a more grounded response.
Can financial therapy help couples who keep fighting about money?
It can. Money conflict is rarely only about the actual dollar amount. We can explore communication, family history, safety, values, financial roles, power, resentment and what money represents to each partner.
Can financial therapy help with emotional spending or money avoidance?
Yes. We can examine what happens before, during and after behaviors such as emotional spending, avoiding accounts, procrastinating on money tasks or swinging between financial restriction and spending.
What's the difference between a financial therapist and a financial advisor?
A financial advisor or financial planner generally focuses on financial strategy, such as cash flow, retirement, investments, insurance and goals. Financial therapy focuses on the beliefs, emotions, relationships and behaviors influencing financial decisions. My CFP® background allows me to understand the financial context while we work on the patterns underneath it.
Is a financial therapist the same as a psychotherapist?
No. Financial therapy is interdisciplinary, but my financial therapy services are not psychotherapy. I'm a CFP® and Certified Financial Therapist™ Professional, not a licensed mental-health therapist, and I don't diagnose or treat mental-health conditions.
Do I need to be wealthy to work with a financial therapist?
No. Financial therapy isn't reserved for a particular income or net worth. The more useful question is whether an emotional money pattern is affecting your decisions, relationships, work or sense of financial safety.
Is financial therapy helpful for women entrepreneurs and business owners?
It can be especially useful. Women entrepreneurs often bring money patterns involving pricing, underpaying themselves, overworking, avoiding sales, inconsistent income, fear of visibility or feeling unsafe earning more. Financial therapy explores the behavior and meaning underneath those patterns.
How do I know if financial therapy is right for me?
It may be useful if you understand what you "should" do with money but emotions, avoidance, shame, anxiety, old family patterns or relationship dynamics keep getting in the way. You don't have to figure that out alone. A complimentary 15-minute fit call gives us a chance to talk about what's happening and whether the work makes sense for you.
Can we work together online?
Yes. Sessions are virtual, so you can join from a quiet, private space. We begin with a short fit call and the money pattern or situation you'd most like support with.
One Last Thing
You don't need to become a different woman to feel different about money.
You need a different response when the old rule takes over.
Book a Free 15-Minute Fit Call ↗We'll start with a conversation. No pressure. No spreadsheet required.
Want to learn more first? Explore Financial Therapy →
Financial therapy services provided by Shannah Game / Winnie Stardust Creative, Inc. are educational, coaching and behavioral in nature and are not a substitute for psychotherapy, mental-health treatment, medical care, legal advice, tax advice or individualized investment management. Results are not guaranteed, and clients remain responsible for their own financial decisions.