Today is a new day!

hypno06

When you look back you can, indeed, see just how far you have come - which can only help in seeing how far you can go in the future.

Keep on keeping on!

taxi73

you are amazing

beanielou

Keep on plodding x

Verbatim

It is good to look back and see the progress made. Good luck with getting the bonus and them finding the missing credit.

Verbatim

I was wondering if your income/ debt levels are now balanced enough for you to get a 0% cc which you could balance transfer some or all of your cc debt to. Then all the money you put on it would reduce the debt rather than go in interest?

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

Verbatim wrote: »

I was wondering if your income/ debt levels are now balanced enough for you to get a 0% cc which you could balance transfer some or all of your cc debt to. Then all the money you put on it would reduce the debt rather than go in interest?

Thanks for this suggestion Verbatim. However, I wouldn't want to try right now as I think I would be declined. Its only in the last couple of months that I have stopped using credit cards at all, and I would rather wait a few more months before trying without fear of being declined and worsening my credit score. It is part of my ultimate plan though, to go for 0% when the time is right and to ensure I achieve my financial goals.

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

So, the Disabled Parents Network charity Ive spoken of before. I have decided to say thank you for what thelady has done but to leave dealing with them for the time being. I was starting to get stressed out. Our meeting was the 8th Feb, she was going to investigate some possibilities of support that same week on the friday and send me a form in the post. Week 1 went by, week 2, week 3, and nothing. I emailed and called her to chase up and see what was happening. Week 4 goes by, then receive an email outlining what was discussed at our meeting. Two weeks on it now transpires three of the things on our list are not in her "remit" so I will have to deal with them myself. The other two things have either been explored before to no avail or been resolved in the time that has elapsed. Have got increasingly frustrated by it all and I just think I am an anomoly to her. Not the end of the world. If Im the only person shes come accross in 3 counties who is disabled and working clearly she would not have had to help others in my situation before. But for me, its all getting too much. I didn't contact them to add to my workload and chase her up or beleft wondering whats happening. I had hoped she could act on my behalf with various possibilities and have the weight of her charity behind her to get results, as opposed to me on my own, but clearly that is not the case. In fact, shes done me a favour in a way because I realise by the way I have reacted to the situation that I am v stressed and possibly depressed. I mean I spend some days in the car still crying about my dh. It takes just one song on the radio and Im weeping. Im trying to hold it together but when I got her last email saying how certain objectives were not in her remit, I just sat here crying at this desk feeling utter despair. I now know of course that whilst I love my family to bits, they are watching what I am doing in my life with "horror", not pride that I am getting by in the face of such odds. I am clearly an anomoly to the dear lady from Disabled Parents Network. I ask myself am I trying to achieve the impossible? Am I doing the right thing by dd? Trying not to fall over is a daily goal and that is depressing, that my walking can be so dreadful every step is made with total concentration. Then I think, I love my business, my customers, the challenge of succeeding, achieving, being able to enjoy what I am working hard for such as precious times with dd in the garden or watching a dvd as we plan to do shortly. I LOVE it. If I stay as I am I need to accept the support from the charities that is there such as the occasional food parcel and be grateful for that but accept that on a day to day basis its down to me and me only. It would be too awful to give up now, and then after having to give up work get the practical support that would have enabled me to keep working my business with more ease. No, I dont want to go there, I can't. I will get through this time and just because I have had a batch of nasty falls does not mean they will happen again! Anyway, these are my thought processes right now, and Ive just got to stop feeling sorry for myself, re 'evaluate my goals and believe in myself. and remember that what other people think of me is none of my business!And count my blessings such as my lovely dd who I am going to join now on the sofa to cuddle up and watch a dvd with!

POSITIVE_AND_FOCUSED

Have decided I will write to my MP if I dont hear from him by the end of March regarding the "task force" he talked about when we had our meeting. Its quite clear why there are not more disabled people in the workplace. They would be expected to be able to function as able bodied people and all their support they receive on Incapacity Benefit would go. Its quite simply all or nothing and in such an unstable economic climate how many disabled people would be prepared to take that risk? For my situation, I am v grateful for my disability allowance, I am v grateful for being in contact with the two charities who know of me and dd ongoingly. If one of those charities had not stepped in to pay for our stairlift I would still be going up the stairs on my bum, not dignified I can assure you! But to me, to help disabled people get back into work there has to be a support system in place to ensure those individuals can do so successfully and thats whats lacking totally.

Clearly, the Disabled Parents Network does a great job and the lady who saw me was lovely but if they are limited in what they can offer for disabled WORKING parents then that shows the extent of the problem.

Have got some serious thinking to do. With dd to consider whats concerning me is that I am being selfish wanting to continue to work and knowing full well that without any support network to fall back on if anything goes wrong then it will effect her most of all. She will be the one to suffer the end result of any serious fall or worse I may have because she is my support network now anyway, but she would be even more in that scenario and has been in the past when falls have occured. If I give up work she would be less worried by it all, wouldn't she? And we have the imminent release of dh murderer and she will have to face that issue too so anything I can do to improve things for her would be good wouldn't it? On the other hand if I continue to work I know I will continue with tiredness etc but we can still enjoy being free spirits, enjoy our home and garden, enjoy living, being free, not feeling confined to the terms and conditions of receiving a benefit such as Incapacity and wouldn't I be committing fraud anyway? I can work, Im not incapacitated yet. I do have a successful business albeit I would love to have the energy to build it quicker than I am. I just could do with a hand sometimes. So, if I continue to work I need to find a way to earn enough to cover the costs of having someone help in the house or garden or with my work. That would be a way round it. But to achieve that I would have to be superwoman at the moment. The truth is my energy bill will be extortionate because I had the heating on virtually night and day during the winter to help my leg etc keep extra warm re circulation issues and whilst the energy Co do offer lower rates for disabled peopleI do not qualify for those as by including my child tax credit payments which contribute towards dds childcare costs and DLA in my incomings I am over their threshold - another reason why in the cold light of day not working would be positive because I would get lower energy bills! plus petrol use is exceeding my current budget as I m sure it is for many so, these are my thoughts this am...

Anyway, just wanted to write this down for the record. I have a lot of work to do today and I will stay positive and focused throughout!!!

Keeping_Motivated

POF I am sorry that you still continue to hit so many brick walls when you keep trying to reach out for help while maxing yourself out helping yourself.

I am still thinking that if you definately don't want credit in the future that making going on some kind of debt management plan would take the pressure off? I mean you would still be working so keeping your independence and house and you would still be paying back the debt (not shirking it) but you would be taking some of the weekly/monthly stress of payment deadlines off yourself?

beanielou

Echoing KM.