I want to stop drowning

WannabeFree

I don't know if either are better than each other as such I just see stepchange mentioned more often now. Even just having a chat first and thinking about it as an option.

It can't be easy to be constantly worried either so anything that can help is worth looking at x

System

Agree with Wannabe , nothing ventured, nothing gained. Being able to sleep at night , best thing ever.

UncannyScot

When I finally grabbed the bull by the horns with my financial situation it was StepChange that I went to initially. Although I didn't do my sequestration (Bankruptcy) through them, I found them to be very helpful and genuinely interested in helping ME to reach MY decision on the best way forward.
My only criticism of StepChange is that they are not always clear on the differences between Scot's Law and RoUK...
I went to my local CAB and through their excellent financial advisor I was finally able to reach my decision and applied for sequestration.

debtaghh

Thank you for all your replies. Me and dh did discuss calling PayPlan the other day just to see what they say.

Little_Miss_Winner

Your doing really well with your debtbusting.

Just out of interest though - have you used the snowball calculator? I am just wondering with the payments you make at the moment - realisitcally how long will it take you to clear it alone?

xx

debtaghh

Little_Miss_Winner wrote: »

Your doing really well with your debtbusting.

Just out of interest though - have you used the snowball calculator? I am just wondering with the payments you make at the moment - realisitcally how long will it take you to clear it alone?

xx

Thanks. I did it a while ago and think it said 7 years.

debtaghh

Morning,

It’s been so busy lately! I’ve not been in a good place lately and am quite depressed but I’m not going to moan about it on here. I paid my minimums yesterday so I need to update my signature with the very aswell so it will actually go up. I have a Xmas shop being delivered on sat but think I may cancel it and try and go to Lidl instead as I think it will be a lot cheaper.

From Feb we will have a shortfall of £500, I have no clue how we will sort this. This hasn’t included any salary from me but it’s going to be a huge struggle.

enthusiasticsaver

Sorry you have found this week difficult. i think you must be at that tipping point where it may be worth looking at a debt solution. IVA is 6 years at an affordable payment but I don't know what they will say about the family money. If a Lidls shop is cheaper then I would do that considering every penny counts at the moment. All I can say from experience is it gets easier as the debt reduces and it will reduce faster with higher repayments. I don't have a suggestion for the shortfall though except to use the council tax free months and do surveys/ sell or eBay stuff and carry on job hunting. Maybe your business will do better but the problem with self employment is erratic income.

Your mental health is important so I would take any treatment on offer as I know you were reluctant to take medication but if it helps you get through this stage it may be worth considering. You are coping with a lot of worry but I hope your DH is sharing the burden.

debtaghh

enthusiasticsaver wrote: »

Sorry you have found this week difficult. i think you must be at that tipping point where it may be worth looking at a debt solution. IVA is 6 years at an affordable payment but I don't know what they will say about the family money. If a Lidls shop is cheaper then I would do that considering every penny counts at the moment. All I can say from experience is it gets easier as the debt reduces and it will reduce faster with higher repayments. I don't have a suggestion for the shortfall though except to use the council tax free months and do surveys/ sell or eBay stuff and carry on job hunting. Maybe your business will do better but the problem with self employment is erratic income.

Your mental health is important so I would take any treatment on offer as I know you were reluctant to take medication but if it helps you get through this stage it may be worth considering. You are coping with a lot of worry but I hope your DH is sharing the burden.

Thanks. I’m back on a waiting list for cbt again. I’ve set my husband with the task of discussing an Iva.

I will try and teach each day as it comes. Today I found out that we are getting £115 back from our water company within the next week, this is a lovely surprise!

I see you are now officially retired, congratulations!

enthusiasticsaver

That's good that your husband is getting more involved and £115 windfall is great. This is a difficult time of year for anyone on a tight budget especially if you have always spent regardless in previous years so some of your depression is most undoubtedly linked to the silly season as I call it. Just remember Christmas is about family and friends, spending time together and relaxing plus of course primarily it is a Christian celebration which is nothing to do with money or expensive presents or buying stuff.

Thanks for your retirement wishes and yes I had my party yesterday and am now officially on leave until the end of the month when my employment finishes. My payslip had LEAVER written all over it this morning which was weird to see. I dare say it will sink in in January.