Money stress doesn’t just keep you up at night. It makes you sick. Research links financial instability to higher rates of hypertension, diabetes, depression, and heart disease. When you’re worried about rent, eating well and making doctor’s appointments drop down the priority list fast.

That’s why economic stability is one of Five Health’s five pillars. You can’t build a healthy community on a financially unstable foundation.

The Connection Is Direct

People experiencing financial hardship are more likely to skip medications, delay preventive care, live in neighborhoods with fewer health resources, and experience chronic stress that damages the body over time.

These aren’t personal failures. They’re predictable outcomes of systems that concentrate economic opportunity in some communities and withhold it from others.

What STRIDE Academy Offers

Five Health’s STRIDE Academy provides free workshops on budgeting, credit building, workforce readiness, and financial planning. The sessions are designed for real-world application, not theory. You’ll leave with a budget that reflects your actual income and expenses, strategies for managing debt, and connections to local employment resources.

We run STRIDE Academy sessions in partnership with community organizations throughout Miami-Dade. Check our Programs page for the next session near you.

Small Steps Count

You don’t need to overhaul your finances overnight. Start with one step: set up automatic transfers to savings, even if it’s just $10 a week. Call 211 to learn about benefits you might qualify for. Attend a free STRIDE workshop.

Financial wellness is health care. Treat it that way.