How do you feel wealthy when you're not?

quintwins

I don't feel wealthy because lets face it i'm not, but your bank balance really has little to do with your life anyway.

As others have said make sure your well fed, look out for bargains and try to get good food, don't sit and wallow keep your house nice and tidy and not sat in depressing conditions.

Try to get out of the house everyday, even just for a walk or to the libary (or shopping for bargains)

Take joy in the simple things like bubbly baths or cuddles on the sofa under blankets, or your fav dvd, a bar of value chocolate and some value cornflakes come to 60p but make lots of nice buns to perk yourself up.

GreyQueen

Go into your bathroom and run a bath. Luxuriate in it.

Think about it; piping hot water on tap. Rulers and aristocrats in most of times past couldn't have commanded water to flow like this. Wriggle your toes in satisfaction.

Draw tapwater into a glass and study it's purity. You're alive because of the cleverness of others in providing this marvel straight to your home. Appreciate it.

One of the famous nineteenth century poets (can't recall offhand which one) used to boost morale by putting on a clean shirt. Which kinda tells me he didn't do his own laundry.

Go outside and look closely at some trees and shrubs. You'll see that although the leaves have/ are falling, the buds of next year's leaves are already visible. The world always turns and anything and everything shall pass.

Tell yourself worse things happen at sea, to others.

Or take yourself into a mall or a shopping street, sit quietly on a bench and observe the passers-by. How stressed they are, how they argue with their spouses and offspring. Do they appear to be having a fantastic time?

Just think; if you had spare cash, you could be out there having a lousy time shopping with them.:rotfl:And then skip off to the libary or a free art gallery to find as much stimulation, entertainment and/ or education as you can shake a stick at.

Lilyplonk

When I'm feeling really depressed due to finances, I try to use 'my best things'.

You don't need to be eating 'special food' or for it to be a celebration of some kind, in order to get your best crockery/cutlery out. 'SmartPrice Baked Beans on SmartPrice Medium Sliced Toast' tastes so much better if eaten off your best plates :drool:.

Make a cup of your favourite type of tea/coffee instead of your everyday brand. Put your cup on a saucer and biscuits on a plate, then carry them through on a tray, instead of walking in with one in your mouth and another two in your hand .............

Have a shower with your most luxurious shower gel - even if it's only 'a brand' instead of supermarket own. Do your hair, put your face on and put your 'good clothes on'. Looking good always lifts my spirits ..................

......... well those are a couple of things that work for me .

heavenleigh

Laughter...and it's free! In my house it's the kids, there isn't a day that goes by they don't do or say something that makes me want to pee my pants.
It's not just them though my parents and i take the proverbial out of each other all the time as does the OH.
Laughter produces endorphins that stimulate the brain to make us feel better.
I'm not well off my husband left me with 4 children a mortgage and very little else but when i can laugh it makes me feel on top of the world xxx

RevolvingDoor

:T:T:T I'm loving the replies.

Rummer

I think you should allow yourself a mini wobble and then put what you can in place to make the month as bearable as possible. Meal plan to make your food go as far as possible and plan some free treats like a movie night and games nights. Enjoy walks with the family, have friends round and do all the wee free things that bring you joy.

Softstuff

I like this as a reminder how rich I am:

http://posters-for-good.tumblr.com/image/542977597

babyshoes

I agree with lots of these replies. I also find that a warm furry critter to cuddle helps put things into perspective too!

Plus a bit of old fashioned escapism is good too - there are lots of feel good movies around to watch for free, as well as books to be had cheaply from charity shops or free from a library.

Having seen real poverty close up, I feel blessed to have a wardrobe full of clothes, clean water on tap, a warm flat and more than enough food to eat. Anything more is a luxury! When I was at University in South Africa, we did some small group practical sessions in local schools. One of the schools was in the local 'township' - a sprawling informal settlement where many family homes have only one room and are made from scavenged materials. Water comes from a single outside tap which serves many families. There are usually a few communal 'long drop' type toilets scattered around, each serving a number of households.
The school we were at was one of the more affluent ones with real brick built classrooms and desks+chairs for all the students. After our first session, we were discussing it with our tutor and expressed our puzzlement at the fact that the children were reluctant to join us sitting on the classroom floor. The tutor had to gently remind us that most of them probably only owned one decent set of clothing - their uniform - and that if it got dirty or damaged they'd be in big trouble, as washing clothes without piped water would be a real difficulty, and there would be no money to buy new clothes if they became damaged. The next session, we took several large fabric throws to sit on which solved the problem.

savingqueen

On a good day I feel I have turned moneysaving into a game eg. I enjoy...

feeling I can sometimes beat the system - adverts for example have very little impact on me (I know they must have some whether I realise it or not)

bargain hunting

seeing how long I can make a tube of moisturiser or toothpaste last

getting a new receipe right or learning a new skill I never thought I could master

chuckling to myself when someone admires something I'm wearing and asks where its from - it's often from a charity shop or a castoff from someone I know.

Also:

I don't have friends (good friends anyway) who splash their cash (whether they have it or not to splash) and look down on me because I don't or moan all the time how much things cost or how broke they are when they have plenty of money. I gave trying to keep up or compare myself with the "Joneses" a long time ago.

I am not bothered about designer or flashy anything but I admit I do have my moments when I think its not fair our house needs repairing and decorating and we can't afford to pay for it or it's not fair we can't afford to have a family holiday. Those feelings don't last long. I try and remind myself that it's also not fair that people haven't got clean drinking water, enough to eat, a safe environment to live in, basic human rights.

All this is not to say it's a walk in the park when you are struggling to balance the books and get food on the table. Sometimes the daily grind gets you down - accept you will make mistakes sometimes as we all do and put it down to experience. As others have said so well - simple pleasures are the best. Look to nature; look for the good in people whether loved ones or strangers; do good deeds and be kind to others, animals and the environment; celebrate things that need celebrating (a fancy meal with someone you don't care about doesn't compare to a cup of tea with a good friend); appreciate clean sheets, a hot bath, a sunny morning or a frosty landscape; keep learning; read a book; do something different or fun just because you can - have a nap in the day instead of washing up or a bar of chocolate for breakfast or blow a raspberry at the person who cut you up or drove straight across the zebra crossing where you were waiting...

Oh and read and post on MSE and OS - you will realise you are not the only person struggling financially and that in itself helps...

sending you a big hug

sq:)

savingqueen

On a good day I feel I have turned moneysaving into a game eg. I enjoy...

feeling I can sometimes beat the system - adverts for example have very little impact on me (I know they must have some whether I realise it or not)

bargain hunting

seeing how long I can make a tube of moisturiser or toothpaste last

getting a new receipe right or learning a new skill I never thought I could master

chuckling to myself when someone admires something I'm wearing and asks where its from - it's often from a charity shop or a castoff from someone I know.

Also:

I don't have friends (good friends anyway# who splash their cash #whether they have it or not to splash) and look down on me because I don't or moan all the time how much things cost or how broke they are when they have plenty of money. I gave trying to keep up or compare myself with the "Joneses" a long time ago.

I am not bothered about designer or flashy anything but I admit I do have my moments when I think its not fair our house needs repairing and decorating and we can't afford to pay for it or it's not fair we can't afford to have a family holiday. Those feelings don't last long. I try and remind myself that it's also not fair that people haven't got clean drinking water, enough to eat, a safe environment to live in, basic human rights.

All this is not to say it's a walk in the park when you are struggling to balance the books and get food on the table. Sometimes the daily grind gets you down - accept you will make mistakes sometimes as we all do and put it down to experience. As others have said so well - simple pleasures are the best. Look to nature; look for the good in people whether loved ones or strangers; do good deeds and be kind to others, animals and the environment; celebrate things that need celebrating (a cup of tea with a good friend doesn't compare to a fancy meal with someone you don't care about); appreciate clean sheets, a hot bath, a sunny morning or a frosty landscape; keep learning; read a book; do something different just because you can - have a nap in the day instead of washing up or a bar of chocolate for breakfast or blow a raspberry at the person who cut you up or drove straight across the zebra crossing where you were waiting...

Once you realise money really doesn't make you happy... yes it does make life easier in lots of ways and increases choices... but you need to be happy in yourself first.

didn't mean to type so much... oh and read and post on MSE and OS - you will realise you are not the only person struggling financially and that in itself helps...

sending you a big hug

sq:)