I am struggling to cope with budgeting

skogar

Another one for the write everything you spend down. It makes it easier to see what you spend your money on and where you can cut back. I also find it makes you think about what you are spending because you'll have to write it on the list so may end up spending less. I tried this and found it really helpful. Also if you know what you are spending on different things it will help you set a realistic budget.

Another vote for meal planning to. You can make sure that you have all the things you need and avoid the quick trip just to get x and come back having bought loads of stuff. The other top tip I think is make a shopping list and stick to it. I was suprised how much less I spent when I did this.

Also when meal planning / shopping remember you will have days when you can't be bothered / don't have time to cook from scratch. If you make a pan full of e.g. bolognaise sauce when you make it you can have one meal and a couple for the freezer for days when you can't be bothered to cook. It may also be worth keeping a few emergency easy meals in the freezer, jars of pasta sauce etc. maybe not the cheapest way to feed yourself but a lot cheaper than a takeaway.

I know people who swear by the paying cash for everything and when it's gone its gone. I've never really tried this as a budgeting technique as I'm such a Luddite I use cash for almost everything anyway!!!!!! :rotfl:

Keep smiling. You won't manage it all at once but every little helps and you WILL get there. Just pick one thing that you are going to do and try it out and see if it works for you and when you've cracked that move on to the next thing.

kb_soma

BMG wrote: »

I don't throw away any food. If I don't like the look of it, I feed it OH and I either have toast or nothing


We never used to have proper dinners as I don't like vegetables of any description. We always lived on pizza, chips, burgers etc I am happy with 2 slices of bread and butter and a large packet of crips

Hi BMG, I've been thinking about you today. You say that you buy pizzas, would you be able to buy the bases and build your own? With tomato puree, cheese and ham? Also, take a look at this site and see if they deliver in your area http://www.approvedfood.co.uk/

You can make yummy home made chips as an alternative to oven chips, cooked in the oven from potatoes which are chopped up to be chunky, part boil these for around 5 mins, drain, and spray with oil. Put in a hot oven for around 20mins.

Could you let me know the kinds of things you like to eat and maybe we could think up an alternative home made version?

Sorry in advance if I'm being too nosey. Hope you feel better soon.

mossylawn

BMG, I've also got a health condition that is never going to improve. I also get housebound, and need to rely on others for lifts. It can really break your heart at times: and that's without pain/exhaustion, whatever else life throws at you.

In my lopsided way, I'm trying to say I can understand a little bit of where you are. Not fully, but a bit. If you need an email rant, PM me and go for it (secrecy always implied, I'm no gossip ).

Take care of yourself, and I hope things perk up for you soon.

mossylawn

Just had a thought about something that you (or anyone else here in a similar situation) may find helpful.

It's hard to plan money and food when your body is not co-operating. On a day-by-day basis, sometimes the best you can do is wake up, and that may be all you may be able to do. Plan ahead for that day, so you can concentrate on getting through that bad time/

Do you have a flare-up plan? I've just come from a hospital physical rehab program which made us all sit down and work out a plan for when we're at our lowest, and consider coping skills/management tools for those times.

Sometimes it came down to cooking ahead for when you are unwell - like as you say, shepherd's pie, but when you have a better day, making say four more portions on a good day to freeze ahead for a bad one.

***

On vegetables:

This may sound silly, but the form a vegetable is in may be a deterrent. I like raw spinach, but frozen is revolting, and tinned won't get past my gag reflex. I don't cook with potatoes as it's all my mother cooks, day in and day out, plain boiled.

If you're wary of raw veg, a curry containing some could be a step into them. Maybe it's me, but those spices perk up my immune system and just make me feel happier. Some can be done in the microwave, others in the slow-cooker, if your energy is low and you need to nap without worrying about it burning.

OK, I've rambled enough! Hope tomorrow is better, anyway.

mardatha

BMG - my hatred of veg is famous. And I had ME for 10 years and was mainly housebound. What I do is make soup, with veg in it, and lentils and barley. You can't taste the bl00dy stuff in soup

suki1964

BMG, here's a link to a thread I started this time last year. I got some great help from it, you might like to look?

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4382391

I hope you keep posting, you aren't alone in the struggle

bluebag

BMG wrote: »

Thanks for all you replies.


I will try and answer all the questions brought up. Apologies if I miss any.

• My health condition is never going to get better, I am afraid only worse. Some days I feel okay and can drive the car but other days I can not leave the house unless someone can take me somewhere
• All my friends either live over 50 miles away or the local ones work full time/shifts and have young children
• I was forced to eat vegetables and fruit when I was living at home. As soon as I left home, I stopped eating them and still don't really touch them apart from the toppings on pizza. I still won't touch fruit
• The cleaning items that are bought are any that OH wants as he does all the cleaning

Maybe I am just lazy and not bothered about myself. I always ensure OH gets a cooked meal most days if I am well enough to cook.

You don't sound lazy and not bothered otherwise you wouldn't be asking on here, you do sound fed up tho.

Don't let it get you down, there is always a work around to any problem, ask me how I know?

It sounds like you have good days and bad days and try to do what you can when you can.. that's great.

There is no one size fits all, we are all different and have various challenges, you can try this and that and eventually you will find something that will work for you.

One really important thing though, it is good to make things as easy as you can for yourself. Nothing wrong in that at all.

Be good to yourself.

zippychick

I've moved this to our budgeting board for you so you can get help from the experts.


Zip


Hi, we move threads if we think they’ll get more help elsewhere (please read the forum rule) so this post/thread has been moved to another board. If you have any questions about this policy please email [EMAIL="forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com"]forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com[/EMAIL].

KxMx

Another one here with long term health problems which are only getting worse :hello:

There is nothing wrong with shop bought ready meals for those times when you've run out of home made ones.

Perhaps on a good day when you are out you could have a look round in the shops and stock up.

If I have a flare up I can be out of action for a week or two so wouldn't be able to batch cook, and if my home made stores are gone shop ready meals can be a godsend.

I can plan as much as I like to never run out of home made meals but sometimes real life gets in the way and it doesn't work.

glasgowsaver2011

The OP's first thread on this is here...

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4842661

I am glad they have returned ..I felt bad when they left the thread....