Debts up to my eyeballs

JuniperPanda

Hello and thank-you for reading this dirge.

I am a 48 year old grandmother, married with kids aged 17 and 7 at home. I have managed to get myself in a situation where I am anticipating bailiffs calling round and filling in N245 forms. I have few excuses, I work full time, I am successful at work, but I do have mental illness issues. I have self medicated with alcohol, hidden and unopened post, and taken out payday loans instead of saying no.I will elaborate later, I just want to open up right now, as it is hard to admit to failing in life.

redofromstart

Hi juniperpanda, just wanted to say hello and welcome to DFW diaries.

Working_Mum

Welcome Juniperpanda - you have taken the first step and that took courage.
Everyone here is massively supportive
((hugs))
WMx

fatrab

Hi and welcome along, you're in the right place.


Post an SOA and be brutally honest. You'll get some of the best advice right here, I know I did.


Good luck on your journey

laurag89

Welcome:)

Wishing you luck on your journey x

JuniperPanda

I will get my SOA up, asap. Currently firefighting and asking for time from people I owe a lot of money to

[Deleted User]

Good luck on your journey.

Well done for taking the first step and posting on here.

Pmo2
xx

JuniperPanda

Todays update:




Spoke to the court they have put all other action on hold. This is a massive thing for me as I didn't open any post until a week ago. I have totally been in denial. Yesterday I spoke to business debt line in association with stepchange, and they were amazing. I actually see light at the end of the tunnel! I have a budget in line with business debt line which I will post. I am going to beat this into touch. Totally determined. I am so grateful to everyone who has taken the time to post on this. thank you xxxx

JuniperPanda

Firstly, if a kind soul could possible provide a link to a SOA, that would be amazing.

Today I spoke to some debt collectors on opening the post. I was honest with them and they were surprisingly very nice to me. I dont deserve that. My account is on hold with them now for 30 days and if i need longer, I just need to call them. Not at all what I expected.

I also spoke to American Express yesterday too. They were very nice.

Im opening post from October and wondering how much better life would be if I had just been honest then.

Until time travel is a viable option I have no reason other than to soldier on.

Another win was changing my gas and electricity supplier. That saves us 30 pounds a month. This will be going into a savings fund for in case - so we dont need to borrow from family.
I am going to make my lifestyle cheaper. Ill try and make my own laundry and cleaning products. Its all got to help right?

I have tons of stuff i can ebay. I have done it as an ad hoc task but i need to sort a few hours a week and do it as a duty. Everything I get in from that will be added to the savings pot.

Once I have my savings pot I am going to make sure I get the parents paid back, we owe them combined a total of just shy of 8 grand. In the meantime I have factored in a small payment to them each month.


And on with daily life - I managed to cobble together a meal from a whoopsied shin of beef cost 1.50, three carrots and five potatoes in a casserole. it was very tasty and cheap.

Things almost went very awry and we did have to throw out the first lot of potatoes as they boiled dry! As my dog can open the kitchen door and make her way around the house at some inopportune times, the husband in his wisdom bought a knob for the door from am4zon. He fitted this item as soon as he came in.

He then left the house with my daughter who had something on at the school, and i was due at a meeting. I thought I know, I will boil up the pots, mash them and we can bake them in the oven when we are all in with some cheese on top......Now the knob has totally lost my trust. I opened and closed the kitchen door but twice and on the third attempt, with the potatoes merrily boiling away, the knob came off in my hand.

To add insult to injury, the tools he had been using to fit said knob were all in the kitchen.

It took me half an hour to get into the kitchen, blackened potatoes stinking the whole house out and I was then too late for my meeting.

Righty -o I shall get a nice hot bath and then sit and look up some home remedies and then perhaps pop an amazon order in for them. I figure if I can cut the cleaning product/ washing powder bill by 20 quid a month its got to be worth some pain.

Oh and is it worth having a spending diary? I work from home (off this week) and spend very little but it might help see what i am spending and identify what we can save and cut back on?

JuniperPanda

Right scrub the idea of making washing powder, I have been the cupboard and found some eco balls. I can get refills cheaply and cut down at least £3 per week for three months. That money is going to be repurposed to the emergency fund.

Todays other small victory, ecigarette. Thats a 70 a week saving already. Initial outlay of £15 and it costs £4 a week for refills, so theres a hefty monthly saving. That money will also be repurposed and put into the savings pot.

fatrab

http://www.stoozing.com/calculator/soa.php


SOA calculator