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Changing habits, wanting freedom
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Financially totally messed up and not much gonna be done about it in next two months. will need 200 out of overdraft for this month which can hopefully be paid of next month but the car insurance went on the overdraft.... just haven't managed to stick to the budget. I know I need to look through bank statements and redo budget to actually show what's possible and were I need to tighten things but just feel too dispirited at the momentDebt: £14,000 now £2169Emergency Fund: 1000/ £1000:j0
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It happens to all of us, JVR. It is so, so easy to justify spending money but it catches up with us if we've borrowed it to spend it. The only crumb of comfort I can give you is that pretty much everyone reading your diary will have been in exactly the same situation and most of us have, one way or another, managed to get back on to a financial even keel.
I'm sorry you're so dispiritied and I wish I could wave a magic wand for you and make the feeling disappear. It will, and it might take a day or two for you to get to grips with how you're going to make it happen but you will.
It's always worth reading other debt-free diaries here on MSE by people who have managed to pay off all of their debts if you haven't done so already. I don't think anyone who keeps a debt-free diary finds paying the money off easy, but they're doing it or they've done it and I find that really inspirational, in addition to incredibly practical. People come up with all sorts of ways of reducing their spending, and that, to be honest, is how most people succeed if increasing their income isn't possible.
Finally, there are of course debt-busting blogs, and the two that spring to mind are Frugal Queen's and Mortgage Free in Three. The earlier years are the most interesting. More recently they seem to be a bit repetitive but if you go back to the beginning of how they started the process of bringing their monstrous debts down, far far worse than yours, it might give you a bit of inspiration to help you through this bleak period when it all seems a bit overwhelming.Better is good enough.0 -
Thanks Honey, seeing that you messaged yesterday spurred me on to finally go through bank statements (I think you may have suggested this at the very beginning!!)
Wow have I been naïve... now it has been a very expensive month with paying for bits for hen / stag and OH going to London/ garden/ house survery and I think I went through 5 weeks of expenses but .....
Negatives.
Food - way over spending so must stop just doing one aldi shop and the rest in Tesco and go back to a weekly aldi shop.
Cash - quite a lot of cash out and no idea what it has been spent on.
Both me and OH spending over our allowances
Petrol - more than I had been estimating as OH working so much
TAKEAWAYS - I'm not sure I can even admit what the total was....
Positives
Only £12 in five weeks on bus fairs
Yea that's it..........
Looking at this month (till April 21st) we are screwed no way of not using the overdraft even if cut expenses dramatically so I need to set a budget that accepts this fact but still limits me.
Positive is that by cutting down in some areas and without the crazy amount oft things we have just had to pay out it is really doable.
Going to try the envelope system.... including an envelope for takeaways rather than using the app and not realising the crazy amount we spent (my big excuse is that OH has been working 70 hour weeks and I can see how it happened so I need to be more prepared with fakeaways)
Looking at the numbers I can get this back on track and keep minimum payments for CC while getting the overdraft payed off which has the car insurance on and probably a small amount from this month.
Also must get better at posting as there is a direct correlation to me going off the rails...Debt: £14,000 now £2169Emergency Fund: 1000/ £1000:j0 -
TAKEAWAYS - I'm not sure I can even admit what the total was....
Hey jvr! It's bee a terrible month for me too for takeaways... it's embarrassing how many times I've resorted to them this month... my excuse has been that I've been hosting so much and teenagers can be fussy so it's easier to just get a pizza or whatever, but actually I know that's just me being lazy.
Honestly, I need to kick that bloody habit!! I need to lose weight too so it would be two birds...
We can do it!! :beer:Mortgage: £83,000
Credit Card Debt: £1,700
Loan Debt: £3,0000 -
Popps nice to see i'm not the only one! Feel like I have all the tools and I'm just not using them. Going to go get lots of fakeaways again for the freezer and will put some cash in an envelope for takeaways and see if can limit to that rather than the dangerous Just eat app using card!
So sisters hen do at the weekend didn't spend much as most was included in the £50 we all put into the pot.
Need to do a food shop will try persuade my mum to go to aldi so I can do a big shop.
Missed my weigh in last week as just forgot .... heavy weekend so must be good for the next few days!
Because of trying to lose weight I banned myself from alcohol on weekdays (I was getting into the bad habit of a glass a night) At first really struggled not to reach for it but I now feel so much better in the mornings and not always having some at weekends anymore. Good for the wallet and the waist!
OH still working crazy hours as has no staff and doesn't get paid overtime but when he did 93 hours last week I told him he has to ask work for more pay to cover as otherwise he would be working for less than minimum wage... we shall see.
Very tight month this month and won't manage to get through without going in overdraft but should calm down in the summer when all the big bills have been paid and sisters wedding is out of the way.
Have my breakfast and lunch with me today and cycled in so unless go to aldi tonight should be a NSD. Planning on going running with the running club tonight as well for more free exerciseDebt: £14,000 now £2169Emergency Fund: 1000/ £1000:j0 -
Hi JVR,
Don't be too hard on yourself, these things happen and getting out of debt is never easy. Often it is a 'One step forward two steps back' kind of situation.
In 2015 my finances were so bad that I had to use the envelope system to manage my expenses, and worse I had to give the envelopes to my boyfriend to keep safe as I couldn't trust myself to not spend the money on frivolous things. I had to suffer the humiliation of asking my boyfriend to hide the envelopes and only give them to me on the dates specified.
In 2016 I got serious about my debt, but then being unemployed for four months meant that despite my best efforts, despite being so careful, shopping around, keeping to budget I ended 2016 in MORE debt than ever.
Life isn't straightforward. You cannot predict what is around each corner. Things will crop up and cause enormous strain to any finances. You can lay out a perfect plan but then life will !!!!!! it up again.
Just keep on doing what you can, keep working on it and you will get there.Debt Free Stage 1 - Completed 27/08/2020
Debt Free Stage 2 - Completed 50/181 Payments0 -
Thanks Florence,
Hearing that does really help. I can be so hard on myself when actually I need to accept and learn from my mistakes - easier said than done!
Forgot to add that as new mortgage not been sorted yet on standard rate this month which was and extra £150! P*ss*d off as started the process with loads of time and then got a letter saying that everything been cancelled as heard we are not going ahead! Trying to get hold of my mortgage advisor now .... grrr last thing I neededDebt: £14,000 now £2169Emergency Fund: 1000/ £1000:j0 -
Florence_J wrote: »
Just keep on doing what you can, keep working on it and you will get there.
Agreed 100% Florence!
We can all get there - the very fact we're here shows we're trying to do something about it! I have every confidence for you JVR and I hope you manage to get the mortgage stuff sorted!!Mortgage: £83,000
Credit Card Debt: £1,700
Loan Debt: £3,0000 -
Just started reading your diary Florence - don't know how I missed I before!
So yesterday -
I said I would do my big shops at Aldi but since have no food in and not gonna get there did a morrisons online order for big shop as better than going into Tesco as could take extras out of the trolley so £72 spent there. After running club I went to Tesco to grab bits for dinner last night and lunch today including dog food an my hair dye was £18 so bit spendy day but should stop me nipping to Tesco again for a bit.
Other than that not much news.....Debt: £14,000 now £2169Emergency Fund: 1000/ £1000:j0 -
Oh mortgage stuff - spoke to advisor and should hear the middle of this week, also checked bank and just took the normal amount so maybe it would be to start next month on the higher rate - fingers crossed get everything done before I get a bigger bill!Debt: £14,000 now £2169Emergency Fund: 1000/ £1000:j0
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