When Uncertainty Hits Home: Layoffs, Mental Health, and Marriage in the Bay Area

In the Bay Area, economic anxiety has become a quiet undercurrent running through many households, especially among those working in tech. With ongoing waves of layoffs, rising housing costs, and an unpredictable job market, even those with historically stable careers are feeling the strain.

For couples, these pressures don’t just live on spreadsheets, they show up at the dinner table, in bed, and in the subtle distance that creeps into conversation. Anxiety about money or job security can lead to increased irritability, decreased emotional bandwidth, and mismatched coping styles. One partner may retreat into work or problem solving, while the other reaches for emotional connection. Both are valid and both can feel lonely. There is an especially painful type of loneliness that happens when you are in a relationship.

And here’s something important to name: you don’t have to be broke to feel broke. Many of my Bay Area clients carry a tension between their high income and their lived experience of economic stress. They’re earning well but still feel anxious, especially when trying to buy a home, save for a family, or survive a two-income burnout. It’s confusing to feel afraid of “not enough” while also feeling judged (or judging yourself) for having “more than most.” In therapy, we make room for that complexity.

If your relationship is feeling the impact, you’re not alone. Therapy can help you and your partner name what’s happening underneath the surface: fear, grief, uncertainty, and even shame. We also learn to move through it together rather than alone. It’s not just about communication skills; it’s about restoring a sense of emotional safety when the world outside feels unpredictable.

Bay Area living brings with it a mix of ambition, pressure, and possibility. And while we can’t control economic cycles, we can choose how we respond to them and how we show up for ourselves and each other in the process.