trying to become debt free is making me sad :(

lyndah2004

i owe about £4400, My OH raves abotu this site and did me a budget that see me debt free in september this year!

i have £150 spends a month, (bearing in mind i used to spend about £400 a month on clothes alone)

i have been paid 12 days ago now and i have spent £42.38 (i have receipts for everything and i write down what i spend in a little book (OHs idea))

i get paid again 3 weeks today and i have £100 left! is this possible??? (this £100 does not include food i have money set aside for food shopping)


also i went shopping with my best friend on wed and she spent over £150 in one shop on her credit card, where i spent £2 on one top, it made me very sad as i would like to spend like her too

lynda x

rayday2

Its ok for your friend so long as she pays her card off but if she doesn't one day she could be in the same position we are all on borrowed time if we dont pay our cards off, all we need is a loose of job etc and bang you are in the same place!

You will be debt free very soon and you only have a pretty small amount to pay off. Take a look below and you will see we have about 16 years of ours.

I appreciate how sad you feel but believe me when your house is threatened you feel a lot sadder. Things could be worse and soon you will be able to probably have a much larger budget to treat yourself on and it will be with the knowledge you owe nothing - that must be nice!

One thing I have learnt recently is that things don't make you happy people do!

Snaggles

Hi Lynda...don't be sad

September is really not that far away. Sometimes it's just a case of getting your head around the fact that buying 'stuff' doesn't bring real happiness, just a temporary buzz, which can be addictive (especially if it's handbags )

Have you tried joining in with some of the challenges on here or posting on the 'how much have you spent' threads - it makes cutting back seem a bit more 'fun' somehow.

rayday2

I just had a thought that could maybe make it so September comes quicker, if you spent as much as you did in the past do you use everything? I made a fortune on ebay selling a load of old branded (not designer) clothes.

Also the frame of mind of selling feels more positive than cutting back - its just a thought.

GirlRacer_2

Hi Lynda and welcome. I agree with Snaggles here. I used to be so obsessed with shopping but now I'm obsessed with paying everything off. The challenges here are a fabulous incentive.

kippers

I still sometimes get sad too when everyone seems to have lovely houses new clothes and spare money for takeaways...but i also get a major high each payday now when i can put money into my savings account for something special or a rainy day. When you have paid your debts off you will have more highs than lows believe me...Keep going!

*zippy*

Its early days yet lynda so don't worry too much, it will get easier as you get used to your new budget. Sept will be here before you know it and without the payments to make on debt you will have even more money to spend. :beer:

scotgirl

One of the things I liked to do when I was paying off some debt was to go on the internet and plan a holiday for after my debt is paid off. You are obviously paying off a lot a month so think of all that dosh you will have to spend on yourself when it is over. Plan an imaginary holiday (don't book anything yet!!!).

chunky79

i know how you feel, i would not say i am in the sad stage now but the elated one now when the wages go in the bank and we still have money in there its a great feeling, before it was on 0 or in the O/D. I now watch every penny i spend, which is a good thing as i now realise how much i did over spend.
At the moment i am doing my garden and decorating my living room for this i need grass 117 sq metres, 3 cubic metres of concrete new fence and a shed. For the room a new sofa, carpet, entertainment unit and desk for pc paint etc. All this is coming out of dp's bonus and i will not go over budget before i would have bought the first thing i had seen and gone a good £500 over budget without even thinking about it. I am actually now having fun haggling for cheaper prices on grass, shed and concrete etc

try not to be sad but also think in september your completely debt free 4 months isn't long hun. Keep your chin up xx

aah

I get sad too, we are having a really really hard time this month and trying to go out with teenage daughter and not spend on lovely clothes for her beautiful self is so so hard. And all the time she will be a teenager I will be paying off the debts.....:(

But September is just round the corner, and then you will have your money back; and a careful spending habit well ingrained

Keep the faith...

chevalier

Could it be that you are sad because your OH worked out your budget, for YOU to stick to? And even know deep in your heart that this is the right thing to do, a part of you is resentful that HE worked it out?

Don't sabotage yourself. It is such a short time to pull in the purse strings. And surely you would feel much sadder, if you came on here in 10 years time, shaking with fear because you thought you were going to lose your house, as you couldn't pay your debts, due to illness, no job etc
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