Savings Log of a 26yr old on low pay

Shelbi

Hey there! Have spent the past two days reading through your thread & through all the advice given, had to say well done & thank you it's motivated me massively & given me the kick up the pants I clearly needed...I've subscribed & look forward to reading more...wish you all the best

tattycath

Hi moneywaster. I've stayed up and read your whole thread from start to finish. WOW! How inspirational!
Well done so far, you should feel very proud of yourself for your achievements!
Continued good luck in your quest.
I shall be reading with interest.

mike88

Having failed miserably to convince you about the government's housing schemes backs are a subject I know more about. As a former semi professional sportsman and an accredited squash coach I am more than familiar with back issues as I've spent a lifetime with physios, chiropractors and even hospitals with back issues.

My first observation is that if you were able to even attempt golf the problem you have is not remotely serious. The problem is muscular and not uncommon. The back tightens to ensure your spine is not damaged and very often the pain is due to muscle spasm. This can get worse so be careful.

The normal treatment is a course of anti inflammatories such as Naproxin combined with a stomach acid preventer/inhibitor such as Omerprazole. The first thing to do though is to take Ibufren which is a mild anti inflammatory.

The modern treatment is not to rest - just carry on with your normal activities unless you are in a job that involves lifting.

My next and most important piece of advice is DO NOT SWIM. Swimming is fine when your back is OK as it strengthens your core. But when your back is painful the kicking motion - especially with breast stroke - actually jolts your back and can do harm. Save your swimming for when your back is better as that will strengthen the muscles but will only have an effect if you do it regularly and keep to it. Golf is just as bad. Putting is OK but striking irons can be problematic.

If the problem persisits go back to the doctor for some anti inflammatories as mentioned above. Your doctor might also suggest some mild form of exercise or even some Physio.

MoneyWaster2007

Determined diva - Is the £8.5k debt all one debt or a number of different debts combined?

tattycath and Shelbi - Thanks very much for reading this whole thread! I wouldn't like to attempt that now as it's turning into a monster-sized one!! Hopefully you can pick out some tips of use in your own personal situations

mike88 - re the help-to-buy scheme, I wouldn't say you'd 'failed miserably' in your efforts to suggest considering its usefulness to people like me. I just feel that there is less money to be made through doing it, as opposed to the traditional way. When the full details come out next year, I may yet be swayed into doing it, though.

What you said about the back pain is spot on, or at least it is precisely what the doctor said to me. She also said it isn't serious as it is muscular. The golf yesterday has made things a whole lot stiffer today though, as you rightly said. The pain loosens as the day goes on, is worse at night/when sat for periods of time. Any ideas of the timescale for recovery on bad backs? Mine must have been bad for about 4 months now..

MoneyWaster2007

atush - sorry, I missed your question about the average house prices in my area. Just checked Right Move and it looks like they are anywhere from £130k upwards (starting with 2 bed terraced houses). However, having just checked HSBC mortgage calculator online, I've found that they are only prepared to lend me £71,000.00 max, based on my earnings. So I'd probably need to go cheaper and buy a flat, which you can pick up for around £100k in this area. So, if using the gov't help-to-buy scheme, that would mean a maximum of 20% from the gov't (£20k), £71k from the bank and £9k from myself.

My issue with this is, I have absolutely zero idea of what the monthly bills will be and so have no idea if I'd be able to pay them...

ampersand

mike88 - what are your views on mw resuming cycling? Can imagine plenty of back pain issues with squash players and unfit people deciding to play.

I'm surprised by your categoric DO NOT SWIM - counter to surgery attitudes here. They work with local gym/pool attached to village college and send people along as part of Well Man/Well Woman programmes. In your view, would there be a problem to mw simply being in the pool for r&r?

However, 'The modern treatment is not to rest - just carry on with your normal activities 'unless you are in a job that involves lifting' is sound. Is this still part of your workday too, mw?,

I know I will feel lower back/arm strain by end of reaching and loading tomorrow night, after market, despite kinetic lifting since childhood. Many of my boxes/crates are heavy[books etc]and need manoeuvring. i am 64, petite, but know how to pace myself and my efforts.

Is it lower back pain? - which we ladies are more prone to. I took naproxen am/pm until source of pain healed - about a year, no probs. The design of chairs is also a major source of back pain.

Hope you're going to be outside for some of today:-). North Yorks - good country to be out in.

#############
re: I have absolutely zero idea of what the monthly bills will be and so have no idea if I'd be able to pay them...

Do any of us know, mw? It will depend how things are if/when you are mortgagee and what sort of build!
On another Thread, someone has posted this, which is interesting[note date though]:
http://www.independent.co.uk/environ...er-801140.html

mike88

ampersand wrote: »

mike88 - what are your views on mw resuming cycling? Can imagine plenty of back pain issues with squash players and unfit people deciding to play.

I'm surprised by your categoric DO NOT SWIM - counter to surgery attitudes here. They work with local gym/pool attached to village college and send people along as part of Well Man/Well Woman programmes. In your view, would there be a problem to mw simply being in the pool for r&r?

As I said swimming is great if your back is sound as the exercise strengthens your core and helps prevent further occurrences. However, with a back issue, even weight bearing kicking during the swimming process, can be problematic - at least it was for me. Any physio will tell you to do things that you are comfortable with. If there is no ill effects and you feel better or no worse after it then carry on but for me swimming was an absolute no no. Swimming is fantastic when the back is better but not before.

My physio told me that cycling was not a good idea possibly through jolting and a hard saddle. But I did cycle occasionally as my body was adrenalin starved and I had to do something. (When you play a lot of sport your body gets hooked on its own adrelain so exercise is craved.) I had no ill effects but you have to be reasonably OK and on the mend to want to do it. Back conditions are so painful you have to be reasonably Ok to want to do it. Presumably that is why MW felt able to play golf but that was not a great idea which presumably will not be repeated.

In answer to the question how long a back condition lasts I'm afraid nobody can say. My personal belief is that once you have had a problem you will always be prone to a recurrence so the task is to manage it. I would have thought that after 4 months the doctor should prescribe something stronger than Ibufren/Ibuprofen. Naproxen combined with an acid inhibitor or Celebrex are normally good. Don't be fobbed off with Declofenec or Voltarol as they are not that efficient in my experience but these drugs are of course patient specific. Give it a couple of weeks and if no better re-visit the GP would be my advice.

Determined_diva

MoneyWaster2007 wrote: »

Determined diva - Is the £8.5k debt all one debt or a number of different debts combined?

Hi MW - the £8.5k is all on one debt :-( :mad:

MoneyWaster2007

ampersand - I am required to lift objects throughout my working day, however, it is relatively lightweight lifting on the whole, so I'd have thought this shouldn't be an issue, and may even be beneficial.

The back pain began in the lower left area, and has since moved to other parts; my GP told me this is due to subconsciously adjusting the body position to protect the injured area, which in turn creates problems in other areas (what a barrel of laughs, haha).

P.s. how was your days trading at the market?

mike88 - My back's been worse again today, although I've found that stretching down to my toes 'pulls it out' and creates a relaxed feel. This may be no good but it helped earlier. I'm reluctant to try any stronger pills, and hope that I can ride it out long enough until recovery. However, last night there was a wasp in my room which I took a wild swing at (forgetting my back pain - which I quickly remembered). Don't think this helped..

Determined diva - Perhaps the first place to start for you (and forgive me if I sound patronising) is to look at your spending. Are you spending more/less than you earn each month? Maybe you've already looked at this. But it is key in seeing where you can adjust your spending in order to free up cash to throw at your debt.

I've had a look at the Gov't Help to buy equity loan - which is not the scheme I'd be interested in, as it applies to new builds, however, in the example they provide, even with the value of the property rising by £10k (from £200k - £210k), the buyer only gets £168k back, which must pay off the original mortgage, plus the Gov't loan. So, it would appear that there is no money to be made by taking on this scheme, only money to be lost. Am I seeing that right? I'm guessing the scheme to be introduced in 2014 will be the same? Please see link...

https://www.gov.uk/affordable-home-ownership-schemes/help-to-buy-equity-loans

mike88

You ask if you are seeing the government sheme right? The one appropriate to you is the Help to Buy Mortgage Guarantee. The Government scheme below merely offers a guarantee to the lender requiring only a 5% deposit with an implied no strings attached. This explains the scheme.

Help to Buy mortgage guarantees

From 1 January 2014, the Help to Buy mortgage guarantee will help you buy a home with a deposit of only 5% of the purchase price.

Help to Buy mortgage guarantees will be open to both first-time buyers and home movers. However, you won’t be able to get a Help to Buy mortgage guarantee if you’re planning on renting out the property.

The guarantee is provided to your lender - not to you.


I agree that the scheme to which you refer is totally unsuitable.

On the question of your back also arch it backwards a few times a day so as to prevent the muscles seizing and thereby increasing spasm.