£0 for 28 days!!! Any advice???

BrussellSprout · 18 September 2014 at 1:24PM

Tixy - it went out on the 1st September - I think they've already paid my debts with it (I can't see much on my frozen account but there are "payment recieved, thank you!" notes on them

CheesyWiggles · 18 September 2014 at 1:26PM

You're pregnant, you cant live on fish fingers and cereal bars. Don't food banks exist for exactly this kind of situation?

7roland8 · 18 September 2014 at 1:29PM

If in work why not tell a mate there you have trouble with a card or something and borrow a tenner or £20? I once got my card blocked for ages after putting the wrong pin in.

You can buy loads of tines of fruit for that - as good as fresh I would think.

BrussellSprout · 18 September 2014 at 1:37PM

Cheesy Wiggles - nothing wrong with fish fingers - omega 3 goodness!

I've got chicken (of various descriptions) in the freezer, sweetcorn, carrots, brown rice, bit of pasta.

I'm taking pregnacare tablets so I know my vitamins are being topped up daily, it's more about me being a hungry beast right now!

So the choccy cereal bars I made is to just to keep me from biting people's heads off in the mornings

I don't have any friends to borrow off, and the only other person is my dad, who has no idea about the dmp or lack of funds or anything of the sort, I would require a bank statement and a lifetime of hassle to get a tenner out of him

Found this £5.50 now so thats a start. Roland - my plan was some tinned fruit, it's better than nothing

lilbert · 18 September 2014 at 1:39PM

I would get a referral to a food bank.

FireWyrm · 18 September 2014 at 1:42PM

BrussellSprout wrote: »

has anyone ever lasted a month and made no purchases? nothing!

Yes. It was unpleasant but do-able.

BrussellSprout wrote: »

I have food in the house, cheap rubbish in the freezer like fish fingers, chicken fingers, plain brown rice...etc. I'm 5 months pregnant so eating is my main issue, especially coming up with things to take to work that are safe to reheat...

Granted you are pregnant, but you dont need to eat any differently or any more quantity than you would pre-pregnancy. Babies are wonderful parasites and there is no harm in eating from the junkier end of the food pond for a month. Just make sure you do eat every day, but there is no need to worry overly about amount. We all eat far too much anyway and you are probably like most western women carrying a few extra pounds anyway. The baby will come to no harm.

BrussellSprout wrote: »

I have no one to borrow off, and don't really want to go for a pay day loan.

Then inventory what you do have and sit down with a piece of paper and meal plan it. Work out what you have and what you need. You are looking for basic nutrition for 28 days, that's all. You could live off rice for every one of those 28 days if it came down to it.

BrussellSprout wrote: »

So really... is it possible to live of £0 for a month? come on... reassure me!

Yes and it sounds like you are going to have to...so, batten down the hatches, set your mind to counting down 28 days and get on with it. When it is over, then you can look at making sure you have an emergency food buffer for the future and ensure this never happens again.

bigfoot371 · 18 September 2014 at 1:49PM

You debt action is commendable, but you are pregnant and need to survive with no adverse affect to your health and wellbeing.

Try local foodbanks, local sikh centres (free delicious and healthy vegetarian food for anyone in need) , any handouts you can. You need to eat healthily.

Priority is your wellbeing, if you need to borrow £50 to get basics tinned fruit and veg, I would do that.

I don't know who you work for, but you could always ask them saying you've had an unexpected outgoing and are left in a dreadful until payday. Employers that value their staff would do something to help, especially if it's only £20 to keep them going.

If you have any close friends, I certainly would never see a friend starve, even on my own tight budget. If I couldn't spare anything I would still help by emptying the cupboards of stuff I'll never use.

BrussellSprout · 18 September 2014 at 1:51PM

Thanks Firewyrm

I like your approach

I'd rather do that than a food bank. There are a lot of people needier than me, and to be honest I wouldn't be provided with anything of more sustenance than I already have. i.e. baked beans, meat balls, pasta, soup...etc.

I've got enough rice and pasta for about 8 meals or so, but then If I mix the rice and frozen veg together, I can probably make more meals than that. Will just have to be boring and economical... and really cut down on what I have so I'm not a starving angry person by the end of the month

BrussellSprout · 18 September 2014 at 1:55PM

"Priority is your wellbeing, if you need to borrow £50 to get basics tinned fruit and veg, I would do that. "

I think we're on two different planets here - £50 is probably my usual food budget when I have money - that wouldn't be a top up or an emergency type of amount, especially when I already have food in the cupboard.

I'm with Fyre on the baby thing - my baby won't go hungry, just me

because I'm pregnant and always hungry! haha

I guess I'll have to take it week by week and see where I am next week. I won't spend these tesco vouchers until I've finished everything I have. See how long I can last!

FireWyrm · 18 September 2014 at 2:00PM

BrussellSprout wrote: »

Thanks Firewyrm

I like your approach I'd rather do that than a food bank. There are a lot of people needier than me, and to be honest I wouldn't be provided with anything of more sustenance than I already have. i.e. baked beans, meat balls, pasta, soup...etc.

I've got enough rice and pasta for about 8 meals or so, but then If I mix the rice and frozen veg together, I can probably make more meals than that. Will just have to be boring and economical... and really cut down on what I have so I'm not a starving angry person by the end of the month

Honestly, people treat pregnancy as an affliction. We wouldnt be here as a species if it was impossible to reproduce if you dont get 2000 calories a day!

Boring, economical, but perfectly calorific and with the added veg, should take care of any vitamin deficiencies, although for 28 days, I struggle to see what deficiency you could develop. Green veg is especially high in folic acid which is what you need - although nowhere near the quantities people think. So, spinach, kale etc. Plenty of butter if you can manage it too.

I've seen a specimen 'basket' from a food bank and I wouldnt rate anything in it as food frankly. Other options are to mooch around the markets at closing, you can sometimes pick up stuff from there that they dont want and cant be bothered to throw.

£0 for 28 days!!! Any advice???

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