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Original poster

Cannot escape poverty, what's the cheapest place in the world for me to move to?

367 replies

despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:36

I can't cope and getting depressed again. I can't earn enough money. Had a real go with lots of tries at being freelance, because my health problems make it extremely hard to keep a normal job. Time off for hospital appointments etc.

I'm on my own in the UK and just done. I have a partner is another country but don't have a visa.

Need to move somewhere it's really cheap to have housing and food, I can't cope here anymore. Everyday is a massive struggle worrying how to pay the bills once my savings totally run out. No money is coming in. Not entitled to any benefits apart from Jobseeker's Allowance maybe which I don't bother with because I can't stand the effect it has on my mental health.

I just can't cope. It's too expensive just being alive. I have no family I can go to stay with, there is literally nowhere to go to relax.

It's like being in a nightmare except I never wake up. Constant, constant stress of money I can never overcome. Yeah I can borrow money but have no way of paying it back if I can't earn.

Where can I go??? Where can I find somewhere to rest???? I need to calm down and can't calm down, I'm having nightmares when I'm asleep, I'm not depressed but the impossible financial reality is making me depressed...because... where can it go from here?

It will never get better? Just breathing and eating and sleeping somewhere safe costs too much money? Let alone upkeep of clothes for interviews, reliable computer to try to find jobs, even small fees for retraining???

I just want to go away and escape, I need to escape.

OP posts:
OxytocinAddict · 06/03/2018 15:39

No advice. Feel the same way.

UK is too expensive to live in.

itsbetterthanabox · 06/03/2018 15:39

Health problems? Have you applied for disability benefit?
I'm sorry to hear you are struggling. What are your ingoings and outgoings?

yawningyoni · 06/03/2018 15:39

Do you have any capital eg in property to set yourself up with in this new country?
The trouble with cheap places to live is that wages are low there too, what skills do you have? What sort of employment would you be after?

PoisonousSmurf · 06/03/2018 15:39

You sound very depressed. Once you accept that, then you can seek the help that is out there for you. Can't you get medical notes from your GP and apply for extra benefits?

FluffyWuffy100 · 06/03/2018 15:42

Need to move somewhere it's really cheap to have housing and food

Generally places that have v cheap housing and food also have very low wages and really poor employment opportunities.

Unless you have some kind of 'fixed' income to support you e.g. a pension i'm not sure moving to a country with lower housing and food costs would help you

Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:45

I am NOT depressed. This isn't a 'chemical imbalance in my brain' it's a sheer lack of options.

I have tried anti depressants, some exacerbated my chronic illness. Others didn't but had no effect beyond making me not suicidal. Which is great obviously but I want more. I want a good life. Not just to not kill myself.

I don't qualify for disability benefits. I have been to CAB and looked on websites and there are no avenues for extra income.

OP posts:
Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:46

I have no capital.

I have skills in marketing and events coordination. I can't get any freelance or part time work.

OP posts:
RingFence · 06/03/2018 15:47

Are you having treatment for your mental health condition? It sounds like that needs to be your priority, rather than emigrating. Sometimes being admitted as a voluntary inpatient can give you the treatment you need, along with a rest and therapy to help your recovery.

We're fortunate to have free medical care in the U.K, and benefits like Jobseeker's Allowance. If you moved to another country you'd be paying medical bills, prescription charges. And you may not be eligible for help if you can't afford rent and food.

Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:48

But then where does someone like me go?

I can't do this anymore. I'm shattered.

OP posts:
adayatthebeach · 06/03/2018 15:49

Could you be a child minder and live in or share a flat with someone?

BarbarianMum · 06/03/2018 15:50

Cheap places in the world are cheap because there is no free at the point of use safety net - so no free health care, benefits etc. For this reason they are dangerous places for those in poverty.

I am sorry you are struggling but I would not recommend you leave the UK (assuming that's where you are) unless you have some capital behind you. Are you living in a cheap part of the UK now? Do you have family and friends locally? Are you getting all the benefits you are entitled to?

BumDisease · 06/03/2018 15:50

Everywhere is expensive if you have no money though.

Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:50

Nobody would admit me? For what?

I cook, clean, take care of myself, watch tv, chat on phone with friends. What mental health condition will I be admitted for? My mood is decent apart from constant panic about money.

Do you know how stripped back mental health care is in the UK? Good luck getting a bed even if you are suicidal or psychotic.

OP posts:
astoundedgoat · 06/03/2018 15:50

What kind of freelancing do you do?

If you can work remotely, for instance being a VA or something and bringing in €800 a month, for instance, in Crete you can rent a tiny flat in somewhere like Rethymno or Chania for about €300 a month. Cost of living there is generally very cheap, and it's easy enough to get set up there, even if you don't have any Greek yet.

There is seasonal work there, as you might imagine, but for out of season, you would want to have something else that you could do, because as people above have said, countries with a very low cost of living also inevitably have lower employment opportunities. Even TEFL mightn't keep you going year round.

That said, while I'm not surprised you struggled to bring in enough freelancing here in the UK, the sort of monthly turnover on which you would starve to death in London would keep you going very nicely in Crete.

However, I would also take steps to handle your depression with your GP before booking any one way flights just yet...

Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:52

I share a house already. I could not be a live in nanny, no, I have no qualifications.

OP posts:
ghostyslovesheets · 06/03/2018 15:52

Could you be a child minder - sorry but WHY do people always say this - childminders have extensive qualifications - they also need considerable capital to start up - and they need to be solidly reliable which the OP has stated she isn't

OP could you move to a cheaper bit of the uk?

MyDcAreMarvel · 06/03/2018 15:52

Scotland, cheap to live and they are going to assess disability benefits differently. Why have t you applied for pip?

Jackanorystory · 06/03/2018 15:52

Quite simply you can't. No country will want you unless you're prepared to pay in... eg healthcare, property taxes etc.
Why would another country foot the bill for your illness? Same goes for benefits. Frankly if you can't earn enough in this country to support yourself what makes you think somewhere else would be any different.

scurryfunge · 06/03/2018 15:53

Could you look for a job where accommodation would be provided? That would take the burden of housing costs off you.

Sharpandshineyteeth · 06/03/2018 15:53

Some people on here simply won't believe that there is no help and support sometimes for people. But there isn't. There isn't always an answer. I hear you OP. It sounds horrific. I have no ideas or options for you, just that I hear you.

DalekDalekDalek · 06/03/2018 15:53

If you are struggling to manage financially, how are you going to afford relocating? Moving is expensive especially to another country.

Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:54

There is no magic bullet for depression caused by circumstances.

Talking therapy does not help me. Anti depressants do not help me.

What helps, is having enough money to survive, and live without fear.

I do not suffer from depression or anxiety when I have enough to meet my basic needs.

Due to my shit health I am really struggling to meet my basic needs.

Antidepressants don't pay the bills.

OP posts:
gamerchick · 06/03/2018 15:55

Where do you live now in the UK?

Original poster
despair1234 · 06/03/2018 15:55

I am not eligible for PIP. It's not simply that I haven't bothered my arse applying.

Have you read how specific the descriptors are?

OP posts:
astoundedgoat · 06/03/2018 15:55

I have skills in marketing and events coordination. I can't get any freelance or part time work.

What sort of freelance work have you been looking for? Can you do digital marketing? Freelancer websites like People Per Hour aren't ideal, but I think I made 11k last year on PPH, which doesn't go far here in the UK, but in a different country would be fine.

I'm not in any position to offer advice on how best to handle your mental health, but you really do have options, and I don't think moving away is the worst idea in the world, BUT as someone said above, everywhere is expensive if you don't have any money, and even in Crete, you still need at least €10k - €15k a year to survive (tiny flat, no frills), but at least it's hot and sunny!