Is £200 a Month Enough???

TOBRUK

my job is pretty intense and stressful and I reckon I will get ill if I don't have treats!!

Sandgrownun, Hi again,
Listen, we are all really trying to help so please don't take things the wrong way - you seem to be on the defensive or in a panic.
I know you are only 24 and want to enjoy yourself, but you told us you want to do this and get rid of your debt. I do agree with COOLTRIKERCHICK who is trying to explain to you how getting deeper into debt will makeyou feel worse in the long run unless you tackle it. You have to get into a mind set - if you can't afford it you can't have it.
What do you class as treats and what do you class as necessities?
A treat for me is a takeaway every 6 months - if that!

Seven years ago I had to leave employment through ill health (I had a good job working at the BBC) and my world fell apart. I had a mortgage (still do thank goodness) and I had been used to a good social life, did not worry about having to budget when grocery shopping etc (spending within reason) and life was great. Then things changed - had to change, you can't live beyond your means and keep your head above water. Although I was put on incapacity benefit I still had to pay my mortgage in full for almost a year, and after that, I still pay the majority and has been a struggle, BUT a budget is essential. You never know what is round the corner, and whatever happens you have to deal with it.

You are in a good position to change things round. How often do you go round the shops? Just don't go - do something else. Buy what you need, not what you fancy/want. Every time you take your purse out THINK YOU CAN'T AFFORD IT - feel that guilt. Face it, it's only temporary until you get back on your feet. When you see that overdraft come down every month you will get a buzz which will bring down your stress levels. I know it's hard to begin with because it's not what you are used to.


COOLTRIKERCHICK
I hope you aren't feeling too down, you gave good advice.

FieryBlondeScot

I think you will find a lot of this is about adjusting your perception. i used to earn half the money i do now but still had credit cards, overdrafts and loans etc. at this time i was also regularly spending £50 in Boots, £150 in sainsbury's and god knows how much in clothes shops etc or on going out. it would never enter my head to check out cheaper suppliers or options on anything. when i think back i was stressed but at the same time blissfuly nonchalant about my situation. it takes quite a lot to face up to having to put the brakes on it and it killed me not to shop for the hell of it!.

however like most on here things only get worse the longer you carry on like that. When the s*** hit the fan i had about 20K in debt and i was a young single parent in private rented accom. luckily i found this site and its taken me over a year of not buying anything unless i need it, cooking from scratch, using vouchers etc posted in here, switching suppliers and going to the CCCS, and finding a better paid job. its quite liberating to not succumb to the 'i want it now' voice in my head and i know soonnnnn i willbe free of the debt. i have had to kill the laziness thing that tells me 'order indian' instead of cooking, and'buy it now' instead of shop around.

i still have moments of temptation (almost daily!) but the reality of the situation is live within your means. sometimes i think about how now i feel i never have any money in my pocket but in truth i didnt have it back then either i just borrowed it on credit!

it must be a good feeling to be finally debt free and think 'what will i do with all that money?' and i have to stop and say to myself i will just live within my means and save some.

good luck

redrabbit29

I don't buy clothes, I haven't for a while . I do need some but I'm trying to hold on until the summer, plus I'll go to cheaper places like primark maybe, m&s - good value, tesco's do excellent clothes.

I'm in desperate need of some shoes/trainers but can't find any. I will spend a lot on these. As in the past, I have bought cheap ones and found they gave my feet problems. So maybe about £50 on these.

Msot of my "spare" money goes on beer, train journeys to watch football matches, food whilst I'm out drinking. Trying to cut this down seriously and I know it will get better from March onwards.

ktb

I know that everyone is different but up until a couple of months ago I was feeling depressed & very stressed at work... and I was most certainly in the 'I need to treat myself cycle'. Now I have taken control and have a strict treat budget (which is much smaller than what I was spending before) I am so much happier its untrue. I dont end up with the guilt anymore, I can buying treats and still service my debts and most of all I feel in control.

Maybe if you really monitor what you spend on treats (spending diary is a must anyway in my opinion) then you wont just need a ballpark of £200 but will be able to adjust your budget to fit your treats more effectively?

lynzpower

hi there again!

I was working in social work as well, I know what you mean about stress and depressing work!

I have to say, I found my training invaluable for dealing with the DF journey. I found a couple of resources on cognitive behavioural therapy invaluable ( Ive always preferred CBT to other therapies, everyone has a fave dont they ) and I found that instead of changing my thinking to suit my behaviour, that changing my behaviour was incremental to making the progress I did.

As a social worker, theres very interesting dynamics in working with service users who crave chaos, and I found it useful to look at my pile of unopened bills, and general state of chaos surrounding me and do some thinking about what that chaos signified, why it was there, what my motivation was in being so chaotic , and what could be altered and what effect it would have, and reasoning things through in that way.

Sorry to all non-SWers, it all got a bit busmans hol there for a sec

Oldernotwiser

Why not get someone in to share your house? You won't need to pay tax on the rent and you'll be able to split the bills 50/50. That way you'll be able to pay off your overdraft more quickly AND afford to go out.

littlescarlet

OP why not try the 'zig zag' approach to budgeting?

You probabably will want to keep going out, but have every other week or month off buying the other stuff - and to be honest, you can go a whole year without buying new cosmetics if you really try, excepting the odd mascara. Just mix the lippie you have and use a bit of vaseline for gloss - 'Old Style' glamour. (I'll be talking about using gravy browning for stockings next - and I wasn't even born in the war lol)

postingalwaysposting

it depends on your lifestyle really... i budget myself £40 a month and then i have about £10 spends a week so that makes £80 but i must say i am learning to drive as well and things that a pay out in a lump sum (ie a holiday for instance this month actually averages out at £9.60 a month) but i must say each one of us on this board all have a different wage and lifestyle just beacuse you spend (for example) £600 a month of food and mr tom only spends £40 that doesnt mean (in all cases) you are doing anything wrong... you have to look at the overall picture

roswell

If you mean your going to put away £200 a month as "Oh dear" funds then yes its enough as long as you have a seperate budget for xmas / birthdays / car repairs / MOT / TAX etc.

If your going to spend £200 a month and dont have the above in place then its to much.

Callisto

I agree that you need to strike a balance between saving/debt paying and treats. I've set myself £125 for non essential spending for this month, with £25 I've already decided to buy something I've been eyeing up on the internet for most of January (if I see something I like online or in a shop, I won't buy it there and then, I will think about it for at least 5 days and if I still want it, and can afford it, I'll then go and buy it - most of the stuff I think I want, I forget about after a couple of days!) The rest of the money will probably go on a takeaways, sharing petrol costs for boyfriend's car and occasionally going out.

I hardly buy clothes or cosmetics now, when I do need clothes, I'll try Matalan, Peacocks or George first. Don't go out that often at the moment, mostly stay in and buy alcohol at weekends, watch a DVD, play console games or go to a friend's house for a change of scenery. If I do get invited to the pub, I just stay for a couple of drinks. This is mainly because I'm saving like mad for a car as I've got my driving test next month, saving to move in with my boyfriend in April and also saving for our wedding. If I don't spend all of my treat money by the end of the month, I just transfer it into savings.