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Original poster

Ok, I’ve reached my limit, I’ve had enough

36 replies

Brownbananabandana · 20/01/2021 20:45

This is a howl into the wind more than anything.... I’m exhausted. I’m working from home, freelance self employed, not had any government support since March, I’m homeschooling two primary aged children during the day and working at night to try to keep on top of what little work I do have. I’m working till 2am most nights, dragging myself through the days, house is a tip, I’m ratty, kids are bored, I’m fucked off and my mental health is going down the pan, I feel genuinely depressed. I’d love to be able to send the kids to school so I could focus and get some proper work done during the day, when are they going to be allowed back? This just isn’t sustainable, I’m in pieces.

OP posts:

WhereverIGoddamnLike · 20/01/2021 20:48

If you only have a little amount of work compared to normal, then why havent you claimed the self employment grants?

iklboo · 20/01/2021 20:54

Gosh what a helpful comment. The grants aren't going to help the OP with the rest of the stuff she has on her plate are they?

I'm sorry to hear what you're going through OP.

wowfudge · 20/01/2021 20:57

Is there a Covid volunteer group near you? Is there something you could ask for help with that would take some pressure off you/give you a break from some of it?

formerbabe · 20/01/2021 20:59

I hear you it's fucking shit

CountessFrog · 20/01/2021 21:02

Keep talking.

wonderwhatshappening1978 · 20/01/2021 21:04

I hear you. It's crippling.

TheYearOfSmallThings · 20/01/2021 21:05

I can only agree wholeheartedly that this situation is shit.

Sexnotgender · 20/01/2021 21:07

I’m sorry it’s fucking shit.

Knitwit99 · 20/01/2021 21:08

It sounds really hard, I'm sorry.

A school friend took Ds8 out for a walk with her kid this afternoon, they were only gone for an hour and I was planning to do a pile of work but I actually felt so overwhelmed that I sat down with a cup of tea and cried for at least half the time.

Don't suppose you know any friendly local parents you could do similar with? Apart from the crying part, that was a bit of a waste of precious time.

MrsBennettsSecretSon · 20/01/2021 21:09

It’s an unsustainable set up, it’s not your fault and it IS temporary

You are not alone

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-55723022

ItsGoingTibiaK · 20/01/2021 21:15

@WhereverIGoddamnLike

If you only have a little amount of work compared to normal, then why havent you claimed the self employment grants?

What an empathetic post. I bet the OP had never thought of that. Maybe because millions of self-employed people have been entitled to absolutely fuck all despite all the empty promises that no-one would be left behind and that Boris and his cabinet of millionaires would be wrapping their arms around all of us.

flowerycurtain · 20/01/2021 21:15

Keep howling into the wind. It's shit and not sustainable. I have no answers. I go to work at 4pm when my dh finishes and work most of the weekend to keep up.

Love the idea of a fellow mum walking your kid for an hour in return for the same. Could that work.

ColourMeExhausted · 20/01/2021 21:17

It's so shit OP. I'm sorry, it sounds incredibly hard for you. I'm feeling a bit like this tonight, in a state of worry about whether we are doing enough for DD's education and how far behind she'll be, and wondering how long we can keep this up for. I've always thought my mental health was robust but it's been on very shaky grounds over the past two months. The thought of this carrying on till Easter...I can't even go there. Hope things get better for you

WhereverIGoddamnLike · 20/01/2021 21:18

@ItsGoingTibiaK
She said she got help at the start, so from the first grant. If she qualified for that then she qualified for the other 2, as long as her income was still affected and it sounds like it was.

bookworm14 · 20/01/2021 21:21

Right there with you - it is utterly impossible and unsustainable. Schools must be the first things to open.

umpteennamechanges · 20/01/2021 21:23

OP said she hasn't had any Govt support since March.

The pandemic started here in March, so I read this to mean she hasn't had any Govt support since this all started.

Like the rest of the 3 million of us that have lost our income and had no support.

ItsGoingTibiaK · 20/01/2021 21:26

[quote WhereverIGoddamnLike]@ItsGoingTibiaK
She said she got help at the start, so from the first grant. If she qualified for that then she qualified for the other 2, as long as her income was still affected and it sounds like it was.[/quote]
No she didn’t. She said she hadn’t had any government support since March. The SEISS didn’t open for applications until May. Even furlough was only announced on 20 March and no-one actually received it in that month.

Sarahandduck18 · 20/01/2021 21:28

It’s shit

Depressing

Stressful

It’s unsustainable for everyone.

Just take care of yourself and the basics and get through one day at a time.

catlovingdoctor · 20/01/2021 21:29

Feeling awful too

VitreousHumour · 20/01/2021 21:43

It wasn't just the content of your post, @WhereverIGoddamnLike - it was the sneery, abrasive tone which has likely made the OP's world just a little bit shitter than it already was. There's just no need.

iklboo · 20/01/2021 21:49

She said she got help at the start, so from the first grant. If she qualified for that then she qualified for the other 2, as long as her income was still affected and it sounds like it was

And I reiterate - how would that help with the home schooling, the trying to look after her children & house as well as work? The grant is based on 80% of three months average of three years tax returns. If the OP hasn't earned large profits it will be a pittance - or if she's not been self employed / freelance long enough it will be next to nothing.

WhereverIGoddamnLike · 20/01/2021 21:49

I'm in the exact same position as the OP. I'm a single mum to 2 primary aged kids, and I'm self employed. All that can be confirmed by my posting history.
Spent the first lockdown teaching them though the day and working overnight. Same over summer because summer clubs were closed. And now the same again. Crying about it doesnt help. People really just need toughen up. It's a pandemic. There is nothing anyone can do.

Doomsdayiscoming · 20/01/2021 21:59

It must suck being a single parent household in this. I think they should have had more support.

ItsGoingTibiaK · 20/01/2021 22:00

@WhereverIGoddamnLike

I'm in the exact same position as the OP. I'm a single mum to 2 primary aged kids, and I'm self employed. All that can be confirmed by my posting history. Spent the first lockdown teaching them though the day and working overnight. Same over summer because summer clubs were closed. And now the same again. Crying about it doesnt help. People really just need toughen up. It's a pandemic. There is nothing anyone can do.

Well that’s OK then. Because being self employed and a single parent means your life is exactly like the OP’s. Your job has the same demands, your children behave exactly the same, your financial circumstances are identical, you have the same level of family support, you have the same level of health, you have the same skills and experience.

FFS, the OP feels how she feels and she wanted to vent about it. You telling her not to cry because you’re exactly the same and you’re just fine is a really, really shitty thing to come on here to say.

Backhometothenorth · 20/01/2021 22:11

It's shit. Shit for the kids. Shit for the parents. Schools please open

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