Beyond help???

Angry_Bear

Cassox wrote: »

... I admit to living on a lot of convenience foods as when I get home after 8 the last thing I want to do is cook. I have become lazy I suppose.

I've often struggled with exactly the same problem, my solution is home-made "convenience foods".
I make large batches of freezable food every couple of months (I have a large freezer, you may have to do smaller batches more often if you don't have enough room). Then I take out a dish in the morning before work and microwave it when I get home. I can easily steam or microwave some veg/rice/pasta etc. to go with it.
This means my usual weekly shop is very small - just veg & milk usually. I even buy bread for toast and keep it in the freezer then toast it straight from there. I never get through a whole loaf on my own before it goes off!
Every now and again I top up on things like rice, couscous and pasta and have to do a bigger shop for the big cook.
This way benefits my health, weight, wallet, time and as an added bonus if I have a particularly bad couple of weeks I usually have enough food in to see me through with no shopping required at all. There are loads of suitable options, but I tend to like curries, chilli, various stews (British, North African, Moroccan, Jamaican).
If you get lucky you can buy yellow sticker meat and cook/freeze it immediately for even more savings.

Likewise I make pots of soup and freeze portions to take to work for lunch. You can make a very large pot of carrot and coriander soup for tuppence .

skint_chick

It might help to keep a spending diary in a notebook you carry around with you and write every little thing you spend in it to see what your money is going on. Try not taking your debit/credit card to the supermarket and using cash, adding up as you go -those scan as you go handsets add it up for you. Also consider making food in batches at the weekend and freezing it, it's cheaper and less effort to do a meal plan for the week, then you're using all the ingredients and you can plan cheaper options to cut back your budget a bit. It means all the hard work is done and you can just come home from work and reheat. Or make jacket potatoes with baked beans/cheese in microwave.

Clothes from Primark and New Look - they do plain cardis and jumpers for under £10, and basic undies from Asda for £3/4 a 4 pack. If you cut your pocket money and coffee money to £30 a month you'll have an extra £90 a month to pay off your credit card. Toiletries from pound shop or cheap ones from supermarket.

I've been checking out cheap gift ideas for xmas presents on pinterest - like chocolate brownie ingredients in a jar, homemade felt xmas tree decorations if you're crafty, or a voucher for a day trip somewhere free/cheap for friends/relatives, or a framed photo of you with friends for a personal gift.

It becomes addictive tackling debt once you get over the initial hurdle of dealing with it, and it makes you feel much better even if you feel horrible about it now.

Kittychick

If you have one or maybe can get to borrow one you might find a slow cooker is good for coming home to or using for batch cooking to make ready meals yourself as was said a little earlier on x

Cassox

Hi.

Yes my cousin is very good and excellent with her own money so she will be a big help. She is going to draw out a sum of cash each week and that will be all I can use until the next week. I think I need this to get used to proper budgeting again.

I will keep coming back to the forum as there have been so many good suggestions and support

Karonher

CapricornLass wrote: »

' I know it is supposed to be best to let your pension build up but would be best to take some now?'

NO!!!! Your pension is your future income for your old age.

There are some good ideas given here that you should try first, Cassox. RE the credit card, do you trust your cousin enough to entrust the keeping of it to them? It means that you can't use it day to day, but it will still be available for real emergencies. Or try freezing it in some ice - again, you are only going to defrost it when its a real emergency. Did your old supermarket offer loyalty points of any kind? If so, could that be used towards Christmas/birthday presents?

Do keep coming back and checking other boards, though. Clearing debts can feel like a long hard slog, and those boards will give you fresh ideas, and help keep your motivation up.

Good luck!

That post has been deleted with the explanation that I had misread the first post and read that the OP had remortgaged AT 65 not UNTIL 65.

Cassox

Some more great ideas. My cousin is taking away all my cards so I will be just dealing with cash for a while. This will be really strange and a big challenge to make the weekly allowance last.

I have bought a note book which I will be taking everywhere with me.

Cassox

Thank you to everyone who has replied to my post. I have taken the first step in admitting I need help and now I need to start putting all the great tips and ideas into practise. It is going to be small steps but I am starting to feel much more positive especially with my cousin offering to support me aswell.

A lot is going to be changing my mindset on things. Not being able to buy my family the Xmas and birthday presents that I would normally do will be extremely hard.

Also by only having a weekly cash allowance will make me think hard about what I am spending the money on and how to make it last.

I know it will not be easy but I will continue to read through all the posts and update you with my progress.

zippygeorgeandben

Hi Cassox - Just a little positive post from me. Fantastic news about the weight loss. Make sure you maintain it now ok?! That's the part I can never do
Keep visiting your thread as lots of people are taking their time to advise

enthusiasticsaver

I am glad your cousin is supporting you. Drawing out grocery money in cash is a good idea and giving the cards to your cousin so you can't use them. I don't really like seeing pocket money on soa when the budget is so tight as it implies you should have money to fritter when in reality you cannot afford that. Your priorities are food and your pets. A small amount for entertainment and haircuts and clothes is also acceptable. An emergency fund is a must

sile001

Cassox wrote: »

Thank you to everyone who has replied to my post. I have taken the first step in admitting I need help and now I need to start putting all the great tips and ideas into practise. It is going to be small steps but I am starting to feel much more positive especially with my cousin offering to support me aswell.

A lot is going to be changing my mindset on things. Not being able to buy my family the Xmas and birthday presents that I would normally do will be extremely hard.

Also by only having a weekly cash allowance will make me think hard about what I am spending the money on and how to make it last.

I know it will not be easy but I will continue to read through all the posts and update you with my progress.

Good luck! I'm glad you have a supportive relative to help you out. Hopefully things should soon look far less gloomy