Bipolar - Payday Loans... DMP... NEED HELP :(

Duk

Hi All,

I have been diagnosed Bipolar and I am currently taking a whole load of prescribed medications, Lorazepam, Sertraline, Propanolol.

I have severe memory issues because of this and my decision making on what is good or not is basically non existent.

Today I woke up with a parcel having signed up for a course at the open university which I cannot even remember applying for

Anyway my main question is.... I somehow... have 8 outstanding Payday loans this month.... yes 8 :eek: I know its rediculous... but I only remember getting one. but my email proves otherwise and so does my bank account.

I have spoken to Payplan today as there is no way I can repay £2600 this month when I am only taking home Statutory Sick Pay.

I was thinking of writing "good will" gesture letters to these companies with £5 Cheques in and informing them its all I can afford (and I cant even really afford that) SSP only pays for my food and medications.

I am wondering if a DMP is my only action or is there something other I can do because of my disability? and whether the good will gesture is a good way to go?

*zippy*

I think goodwill gestures are usually a £1, but it might be best to follow payplans advice what to do next, someone with more knowledge will be along soon to advise.

Open university, if you paid ring as soon as you can for a refund, they gave me the hard sell, but I did get all my money back thankfully.

Just want to add this link for you in case you hadn't read it

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cards/mental-health-guide


Good luck x

amyloofoo

Big hugs from a fellow person who's suffered financially due to Bipolar :grouphug: I know it's hard when medication makes it difficult to concentrate, so is there a friend or family member who's available to help you go through paperwork? If you're going to get on top of this then you need to know the full extent of the situation, and if you were unaware of the PDLs then there are potentially other issues waiting to be discovered. Don't panic - lots of us with this condition have gone through the same, and the situation does get better. If you're not already a member, Bipolar UK can offer advice and support, and they have self-help groups across the country.

Do you have other debts? If your total debts are £2600 then I'm not sure you're going to be eligible for a DMP with Payplan, as I'd read that they'll only accept them for total debts over £5000. Don't worry though, there are other options and most lenders will usually be sympathetic when presented with medical evidence.

If you're seeing a CPN / psychiatrist / crisis resolution team then please mention this to them, as there are always people who are able to help and they can sometimes help to draft letters and send supporting evidence. The CAB can be really helpful, especially if your debts are below the £5000 threshold so it may be worthwhile trying to book an appointment locally (if you have anxiety, they also have a board on here).

I hope you find the support you're looking for and things are resolved quickly for you :grouphug:

Duk

amyloofoo wrote: »

Big hugs from a fellow person who's suffered financially due to Bipolar :grouphug: I know it's hard when medication makes it difficult to concentrate, so is there a friend or family member who's available to help you go through paperwork? If you're going to get on top of this then you need to know the full extent of the situation, and if you were unaware of the PDLs then there are potentially other issues waiting to be discovered. Don't panic - lots of us with this condition have gone through the same, and the situation does get better. If you're not already a member, Bipolar UK can offer advice and support, and they have self-help groups across the country.

Do you have other debts? If your total debts are £2600 then I'm not sure you're going to be eligible for a DMP with Payplan, as I'd read that they'll only accept them for total debts over £5000. Don't worry though, there are other options and most lenders will usually be sympathetic when presented with medical evidence.

If you're seeing a CPN / psychiatrist / crisis resolution team then please mention this to them, as there are always people who are able to help and they can sometimes help to draft letters and send supporting evidence. The CAB can be really helpful, especially if your debts are below the £5000 threshold so it may be worthwhile trying to book an appointment locally (if you have anxiety, they also have a board on here).

I hope you find the support you're looking for and things are resolved quickly for you :grouphug:

Thanks for the support.

I have debts of £8600 altogether so Payplan have agreed. I do also have anxiety and yep, I'm currently seeing the community mental health psychiatrist. So I may ask them charities for some help with letter writing.

Forget Parental Controls....someone needs to invent Bipolar Controls its driving me insane.

Fortunately my partner usually helps me but its not always good as I hide this from her... as I know she will disprove of it. Even if I cant remember... I know I would have hid that I was getting a PDL.

As for a DMP, I'm not too fussed with my rating... as its so rubbish anyway, I'm sure it can only make things better in the long run.

Turn a negative into a positive... I'm sure you have heard that before :P

as for the Open University I explained my "predicament" and they have agreed to un-enroll (is that a word) me and refund me.

Should I tell my creditors about my illness or will this just cause more... we want proof etc etc?

Thanks for both your help

amyloofoo

Duk wrote: »

Thanks for the support.

I have debts of £8600 altogether so Payplan have agreed. I do also have anxiety and yep, I'm currently seeing the community mental health psychiatrist. So I may ask them charities for some help with letter writing.

Congratulations for deciding to tackle your debts and hope everything goes really smoothly now Payplan are involved. Psychiatrists are used to seeing people who've ended up in financial problems due to their condition and most are more than happy to help with any letters that are needed.

Forget Parental Controls....someone needs to invent Bipolar Controls its driving me insane.

I tooootally back you up on this - the number of times I've woken up with a 'financial hangover' after an episode of manic spending :mad: It feels so disempowering, as though I can't trust myself. I'm not saying my approach will work for everyone, but myself and DH have found that paying our incomes into a joint account and setting up direct debits for bills has really helped. We both have cards for the account, but DH keeps mine and I ask for it if I need it, let him know how much I'm taking and what it's for. We each have our own 'silly money' which is paid into our personal accounts each month by standing order, and this is mine to be spent on whatever BD has told me I desperately need that month. DH now has control of my credit cards, etc and both of our bank statements are in a folder in the lounge and can be seen by either of us. I really hated the idea at first as I'm very independent and hate being patronised; but it works really well in practice and has largely helped me to gain control over my BD-fuelled spending.

Fortunately my partner usually helps me but its not always good as I hide this from her... as I know she will disprove of it. Even if I cant remember... I know I would have hid that I was getting a PDL.

As for a DMP, I'm not too fussed with my rating... as its so rubbish anyway, I'm sure it can only make things better in the long run.

Does your partner know about the full situation now, and that you're entering into a DMP? I know it may be embarrassing / uncomfortable to talk about, but it's important you let her know as it's very likely that a DMP will also affect her credit rating. She's likely to be really supportive, especially as you can demonstrate that you've taken lots of steps to try to resolve the situation.

Turn a negative into a positive... I'm sure you have heard that before :P

as for the Open University I explained my "predicament" and they have agreed to un-enroll (is that a word) me and refund me.

The OU are pretty understanding, I'm glad it all seems to be resolved for you.

Should I tell my creditors about my illness or will this just cause more... we want proof etc etc?

Some creditors will suspend interest, etc if they're told of medical issues; but they're likely to demand proof. As you're entering a DMP and getting help from Payplan, I don't think it's necessary to let them know about your health. Maybe Payplan can give you more specific advice if they think it could be beneficial?

Thanks for both your help

Good luck on your debt free journey :T

Rachel197474

So sorry your going through this having the same issue myself with bipolar and I stupidity took out a v5 Loan against my car. I have written a good will letter to carcashpoint but they are just being very rude. I'm seeing CAB on Monday for further advise and I'd suggest if you can do the same.

Rachel197474

amyloofoo wrote: »

Good luck on your debt free journey :T

I too hide all the debt problems from my partner and he knows nothing of this v5 loan, not that he's not supporting me but I feel so damn silly I did this. Bipolar sucks

Duk

Rachel197474 wrote: »

I too hide all the debt problems from my partner and he knows nothing of this v5 loan, not that he's not supporting me but I feel so damn silly I did this. Bipolar sucks

Agreed +1! Bipolar is horrible.

amyloofoo wrote: »

Does your partner know about the full situation now, and that you're entering into a DMP? I know it may be embarrassing / uncomfortable to talk about, but it's important you let her know as it's very likely that a DMP will also affect her credit rating. She's likely to be really supportive, especially as you can demonstrate that you've taken lots of steps to try to resolve the situation.

Me and my partner have no financial commitments together and before I spoke to payplan I ensured that we were not linked to each others credit files... Oh and yes she does know the whole situation now

I used checkmyfile.com and they have informed me that my partner wont be affected.

What I have done thought is get a BASIC hsbc account with only a cashcard and also a creditbuilder pre-paid card. I will leave my bill money in the basic bank account and put any available spending money/petrol/medical etc on my prepaid card.

Hopefully in 6 years time I will look back and smile