To be so sick of being broke?

[PrincessC0nsuelaBananaHammock]

This is pretty much just a moan really. I'm already doing everything I can to try and improve our situation financially. Although nothing's working atm. 😑

Both DH and I work full-time, on minimum wage. Me 45 hours per week, him between 40-50 depending on the week. And we still can't make ends meet. I'm talking having about £50 left in the bank 2 days after payday because all the bills have come out.

Not entitled to any benefits as earn too much for UC (on MW? 😐). Kids are grown up (22 and 18) but still living at home. DD1 is in college and on UC and waiting to see if she's entitled to PIP for her autism. DD2 is starting uni next month and works part-time herself.

I'm just so fucking sick of the cost of everything. To the point I'm questioning whether I can afford to buy a £6 pack of Benadryl for my fucking hayfever! 😡

Applying for multiple better-paying jobs every week and getting bloody nowhere! Urgh.

It's also ok OP if you just want a moan rather than practical suggestions.

I get it, it's doable but joyless month to month and wears you down.

I hope your dc gets PIP, that will help.

It also sounds like dc will not be dependents living at home for ever, and it's great they're at college and uni meaning hopefully they can get well paid jobs in future.

Benedryl in the UK contains active ingredient acrivistine...there is no generic form but you can get it cheaper on Amazon.
However it's a second generation anti histamine so equivalent to cetirizine which is available generically

You can buy generic versions

Acristavine is available from other companies - Benadryl is the brand name. You can purchase it cheaper than buying the brand Benadryl

Allacan is just Ceterizine. Not a helpful post. I’ve no doubt the OP would use Ceterizine if it worked for her, you can buy it in any chemist’s.

If you want some practical help OP then post an honest income and expenditure.
If you just want a general moan about the COL then that's ok too - lots of prices are rising, and that in itself is draining.

Tell us what you are paying per month (divide by 12 if it's an annual expense) for

Rent/mortgage
Gas
Electricity
Water/sewerage
Contents insurance
Building insurance
Boiler cover
Life insurance
Broadband
Tv licence
Phones
Pet insurance
Pet treatments (flea/tick/worming)
Pet food
Christmas presents
Birthday presents
Professional memberships
Clubs and societies
Food
Cleaning products
Clothing Including clothes for work.
Footwear
Toiletries
School uniform
School trips
School meals
Car tax
Car insurance
Car servicing
Fuel for car
Window cleaning
Union membership
Public transport fares

These are the sort of information that CAB would ask for when helping someone in debt but the same questions apply when working out a budget.

Do people really need the OPs spending break down for gods sake? Clearly only the people who are out of touch.

We know how much minimum wage is, how expensive bills, food, housing and general living is. My husband and I are middle earners with 2 kids and literally have zero disposable income anymore. It’s so fucking depressing

@genesis92 of course it matters it’s not a one size fits all, there are so many variables!

Are you feeding two adult children? If you are, that’s going to be where a lot of your money is going.

Although it's very personal can you write down every single direct debit etc and pop the picture on here? I did this myself well over a year ago and I was shocked at how the things I was paying for seemed ridiculous to everyone else, one was including £140 to sky every month. I thought that was the norm! I got rid of that and got a fire stick instead and just mostly watch netflix! Things like that do make u question whether you're paying well over the odds!

Actually yes it does help, look at my previous post

What sort of jobs do you work in? Do you religiously look for better paid jobs? It’s bound to be hard supporting 4 adults on 2 minim wages

Of course it helps, this is such a daft post.

if you both work around 45h per week on NMW, your annual income is 57k gross. you said one DC is working part time, you don't have small children, no childcare, a child living at home on UC. Your combined household income is quite a bit more than what most people have coming in. It's completely meaningless to post without disclosing where your outgoings are. Do you pay rent? Or a mortgage, how much? Other debts. I think it's a very good annual income and not one to plead poverty with but it obviously depends all on your outgoings.

I sympathise with you OP, and also congratulate you getting your DC through university. Not directly what you have asked but re. Benadryl, I shall paste this from ChatGPT. I’ve recently been taken off a bladder med (Solifenicin) that had anticholinergic properties for the same reasons.

• Cumulative Use and Dementia Risk: A 2015 study published in JAMA Internal Medicine found that older adults who used anticholinergic medications like diphenhydramine for three years or more had a 54% higher risk of developing dementia compared to those with minimal use.

I knew I’d seen Benadryl mentioned somewhere recently as I was soundly own research on this. My GP has just prescribed me Fexodenadine for my allergies, which is supposedly safe.

That's what a money/debt adviser would need before they could give constructive advice.

The adult children should be contributing.

Definitely need a breakdown as many folk are on the same income or less, run a home etc and don’t struggle. Sometimes you need a fresh pair of eyes to look at things and offer advice.

Well unless Benadryl website is wrong….?! Have a look… it lists its active ingredient as Diphenhydramine HCl

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/budget-planning/

Use this budget planner to help you.

You have two adults living with you who aren’t contributing anything. This is where it’s going wrong. (I appreciate it’s difficult- I have a 22 year old dd back living with us after graduating from university and all she can’t find at the moment - not for lack of trying - is 16 hours a week in a cafe!)

For clarity they have between 3.4 and 3.5k a month based on NMW and 40+ hrs a week paying into pension

the clear question is how much housing costs

I think everything is relative really. I mean it's no good posting OG as they may be things you can't really change .I.e rent/ mortgage etc.Also food prices are so high now too .

Yes, I spent over 20 years out of work as a SAHM/carer for dd1. We used to get DLA for her, and I was able to claim carer's allowance. DH has always worked, but they've always been low level MW jobs. Every time he's gotten a qualification in something, it's ended up being useless.

DD1 got rejected for PIP when she was 16, as "she looks fine to me", according to the bitch of an assessor. It's taken until now for us to be able to go through the process of reapplying, as after last time, she pretty much had a mental breakdown. She hasn't been recovered for that long.

My job is in admin, I work 45 hours per week but only get paid for 40. The extra 5 hours are for my unpaid breaks, but 9/10 I work through them as our workload is fucking ridiculous. DH is a milkman. Again, he gets paid for around 35 hours per week, but does anything between 40-50.

I know we can complain about workloads etc, but it's a problem in most low-level jobs now. If you can't keep up with the workload, they'll just find someone who will. It's easier to keep your mouth shut, do the work and just keep trying to get another job.

So take home after tax, NI and pension, I get around £1750ish per month, and DH gets £1560 per month. £3310 for everything for 4 adults isn't a lot.

Breakdown of everything;
Rent - £600
Gas/Electric - £450 (paying off debt)
Water - £100 (paying off debt)
Council Tax - £165
Council Tax debt - £230 (paying off bailiffs)
Mobiles - £100 (2 on contract, paying off devices, 2 PAYG)
Car Insurance - £45
Diesel/car maintenance - £100 (DH needs the car to get to work as does permanent nights)
Internet - £65 (need top speed as WFH FT)
Subscriptions/VPN - £66
Gym - £25
Mounjaro - £99
Debt - £112
Groceries (including toiletries etc) - £850 (ish).

I do shop around as much as possible for different deals etc, shop in a mixture of Aldi, Tesco, Lidl and Asda.