Nearly half of Poles carry debt, with one in six unable to repay on time, leading to severe mental health impacts.
The Scale of Debt
A report on “Mental Costs of Excessive Debt” reveals 48.3% of Poles have various obligations, with one in six unable to repay on time. To patch household budgets, one in five turns to non-bank loans. Additionally, 2.45 million people struggle with loan repayments, and total unpaid consumer debts reached 82.7 billion zł in 2025.
Mental Health Toll
Growing financial arrears are increasingly a source of chronic stress, severely impacting mental health. Polish police recorded over 300 suicide attempts linked to financial distress and excessive debt in 2024. Difficulty repaying significantly worsens mental health, especially as arrears mount, debts grow, and individuals lose control over their finances.
Social Stigma and Silence
About a quarter of indebted individuals report lacking emotional support during tough times. Financial problems, especially when seen as hopeless, combined with social pressure and isolation, heavily burden mental health. One in three adults reports reduced well-being due to economic hardships. Debt often carries shame, and silence deepens isolation, hinders recovery, and amplifies financial and emotional issues.
Expert Solutions
Psychologist Roman Pomianowski emphasizes that shame leads to poor decisions. Debt can affect anyone regardless of background, while open conversations break taboos. However, many can only turn to one or two for help; 13% have no one to confide in. Within relationships, 41% would only share severe financial problems with their partner, and 7% never would. Professor Katarzyna Sekścińska notes that exiting debt is real but challenging, requiring healthy support free of shame and helplessness.
The Campaign Response
The “Stop the Debt Spiral” campaign aims to build awareness of responsible borrowing and protect against debt consequences, focusing on mental health impacts. It targets individuals facing financial difficulties, educating on budget management, debt monitoring, and high-risk loan risks. The campaign advocates for a unified database where banks and lenders share client debt information, enabling consistent credit checks and preventing over-indebtedness from scattered incomplete data.
A free hotline offers access to psychologists and lawyers to regain financial control and exit the debt cycle. Actor Kasper Kuszewski encourages anonymously sharing experiences at the campaign website to break stigma and show real solutions exist. Experts view combating the debt spiral as both an economic challenge and a vital public health policy.
