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.

Given my multiple health problems (even when a healthy weight) I suspect I would have ended up as T2DM. In any event, people who are not T2DM, do have problems with insulin resistance. That’s one of the reasons some people struggle to lose weight.

And the comment about chocolate was because the person I was responding to suggested that not wanting chocolate was a benefit of using WLI. The point I was making is that I didn’t eat it much before WLI. I am not a dessert person. I don’t like sugary foods, never have….

Exactly this! It’s just lazy.

Your broadband is really high - we just switched and it’s £25 a month for a year then goes to £35. Dh and I wfh and have 3 teens so it’s high use. When we’re tight on finances we’d choose one streaming service - Netflix or prime - not both. You want what you want whether finances allow or not, and yours currently don’t. There’s easy cut backs. I’m not agreeing with others re mounjaro because I’ve used it myself and it’s life changing but you need to make some sacrifices until the debt is paid off, then you can reevaluate.

I used to think this - lost weight easily in the 30s post dc but then, in my 40s, it changed and the diets I had done before stopped working. I doubt op has got to this point having never tried a diet. If it was easy then the drug wouldn’t exist. You still have to diet it just supports that. Calling the mum off a disabled child lazy is unnecessary - walk in another’s shoes and all that. Mounjaro is life changing and weights may well help op to improve her circumstances longer term.

I’m in my 60s and know how much harder it gets to manage my weight as we get older but it all comes down to life style choices not quick fixes.

We earn a fair bit more than you OP with similar outgoings and struggle to justify / pay for things like netflix and gym and hobbies.

It's truly shit at the moment, we are lucky to be intelligent, well educated people and have both been in our careers for more than 20 years, have reached our peaks without taking on v senior roles that would be hard with DC with SEN, and still very much feeling the pinch. (Should have chosen more lucrative careers!)

Oh piss off. I'm on mounjaro and still only losing 1lb a week on under 1200 calories a day and either walking over 10,000 steps or going to the gym. As someone whose only 5ft2 and suffers with pcos it's incredibly difficult to lose weight. And as I lose weight I'm going to have to reduce my calories even further to be able to maintain it. Do you have any idea what it is like to be only able to eat c.1000 calories a day? And then have judgemental pricks online call me lazy because they are too thick to see beyond the end of their own noses?

@PrincessC0nsuelaBananaHammock Op some high earners come on saying they have nothing left too. It’s the reality of the cost of everything these days .
Someone said to me last year, life now is dyif you have all your bills paid you’re winning .
Sadly this is true . Most don’t have anything left.
Try change your mind set . Your paying all your bills, you have food that you need and heating and your choosing to spend your spare cash on gym , health medication and Netflix etc instead of for a holiday .

Once the debt comes down and the kids contribute things will get easier . You will also stop the monjaro.
Could you do any studying part time to give you a chance or a better paying job further down the line.

So what else is he doing to move his career on? Or he goes part-time and does some caring for your daughter and you upsize your career. Minimum wage for two people isn't meant to be a lifelong thing, ideally it's just for the start of your career.

OP ignore people who just want to put people down who are already down
You have done well.. you have managed to raise 2 independent young people.
You have sustained a marriage.
Of course you are entitled to Netflix and help with your weight …you are allowed stuff for you !
hopefully it will get easier as your children grow.
Hold onto your vision for yourself.
Many people on a low income are much much better at budgeting than those on higher incomes.
Stay strong.

You are right to prioritise health and if the tv packages are your main entertainment costs, then that’s a relatively cheap social life. You know things will be a lot easier once your debt is paid off, so you’ve just got to ride it out till then.

The only place you have wiggle room is the food budget. Yes prices are crazy now but there is room to cut costs here. We shop at Tesco for 4 adults. Probably spend about £600 but we eat well on that. I bulk buy special offers which don’t all happen at the same time so the offers are spread out. It wasn’t much cheaper when I tried Aldi when I take into account the special offers.
Why don’t you have a good look and see if you can save a bit here and there. Bulk cook and freeze. We eat really well for £600 and I could heavily cut back if I needed to, so even taking into account pet food and gluten free stuff, you could shave a few pounds from your £850.

Generic acrivastine costs just as much as benadryl allergy relief. Generics are usually, but not always, cheaper. I would usually agree with you, but it just isn't the case with acrivastine.

Sounds absolutely demoralising OP, you and DH are working so hard to just keeping your head above water. It's sh*t.
Sounds like your DDs are doing well, good luck with DDs pip application, the benefit and work website is really helpful for this.

@PrincessC0nsuelaBananaHammock your daughter has played a blinder choosing joinery. Friends son did. Had the building site stuff but honed his skills at weekends doing private homes. He's built the most amazing unit in the hall for a friend for coats, shoes, boots, hats, gloves etc. Made to measure. I'll try and find a picture.

Found it

Do you feel better? If you'd bothered reading properly (do you need glasses maybe? I can recommend Specsavers) you'd see I don't pay for Disney, and never have. Thank you clubcard points! Again if you could read properly you'd see I've already said both kids are on £10 PAYG plans. Oops you do look a bit silly now, don't you? As for being rude, again if you bothered reading, you'd see I'm only "rude" to people who are being twats. A bit like yourself. 😊

Because I've been a carer for the last 20 years.

How easy it must be for you in your Ivory Tower, judging people. Does it make you feel better about yourself?

Wow Justasking that is bloody gorgeous! What a talented young man!

You’re rude to quite a few people

and if you use club card points for Disney that’s clubcard points you’re not using for money off your incredibly high grocery bill that apparently as all GF bread 🤷🏻‍♀️

£4.98 for ALMUS for 12 of £6.20 for Benadryl brand

There are people out there who really are broke, you're not broke if you can spend £850 on food, then all the other bits on top of it. So all the posters giving sympathy are just as tone deaf because there are people out there really struggling to put food on the table.

To moan about being broke when you clearly aren't just shows a lack of awareness.

Only as rude as you dear. I'm talking to you the way you're talking to me. If you don't like it, perhaps think before dishing it out?

I can't believe someone is actually berating me for getting Disney for free. 😂I think maybe you need a hobby.

I do actually. I wasn't going to post but felt why not if you are happy to post and then tell others to f off then I can reply too.

And no issues with eyesight - thank you! ;) No I did read about using clubcard points to pay for Disney - but those points could have been spent elsewhere or on food. So another luxury.

And I don't look silly tbh you were being rude to anyone who wasn't sympathising with you which is all you intended with your post - to get sympathy.

Thanks - love being a Mumsnet twat 🤣might change my username

Thanks, I've now seen the error of my ways. I realise that bringing in £1750 per month makes me as rich as Jeff Bezos.