Give me some motivation! Feeling embarrassed and down about debt!

edited 30 October 2021 at 11:26AM in Debt free diaries
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leannes_3leannes_3 Forumite
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edited 30 October 2021 at 11:26AM in Debt free diaries
Posting here to finally face the music. My lightbulb moment has been having my baby girl. We borrowed money on credit cards and overdrafts to do up our home, and I’ve since had 6 months of crippling maternity pay. I’m losing sleep now over our debt. We’re able to make the payments on all our debts, and we’re going to start overpaying on debt in July when I get my full wage back.

just looking for some motivation that we can do it!!!

here’s our total debt :(

CC 1: £7200
cc2 : £1500
overdraft: £2000
Buy now pay later: £430

seeing it all like that makes me feel sick.

like I said, we’re starting to pay £500 a month off when my wage comes back in July,  but seeing it all like that makes me want to cry! 
Total debt at LBM: £9919
Creation finance: £436/PAID OFF IN FULL
Capital One: £2200/£1842
MBNA: £7283/£5566

Total debt: £9919/£7408


Emergency Fund: £950
Christmas 2022: £110/£600
Baby Savings: £232.87
Investments:£400

Total Savings: £1692.87


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Replies

  • femalemonarchfemalecaninefemalemonarchfemalecanine Forumite
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    Please don't cry. You're making payments and have plans to start making real inroads into it this month - that's a good thing.
    I know debt can be horrifically worrying, but you will get it paid off, because you have a plan.
    You have recently had a baby, might you need to talk to a healthcare professional about 'baby blues'?
    you've spent the money on making your home lovely for your new daughter, so try and focus on your baby, and carry on with your plan to get the debt paid off. You can and will do it, but please don't be so hard on yourself.
    take care, and good luck.
  • gina30gina30 Forumite
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    You have done the right thing by acknowledging it! I was in debt for years after being a single mum. In total 1200 overdraft, 2000 credit card doesn’t sound much but when I had my baby and my partner moved in I lost all benefits and had very little of my own money coming in. 
    I started off ploughing everything to pay my overdraft off, then a buffer of savings before I tackled the cc. 
    Please keep positive and enjoy your baby. The best advice I can give is get a country park pass so you can go out free, take picnics, cook in nice meals to feel like it’s that bit extra special. Write down all your spends. 

    Once you are back at work you will feel much better and congratulate yourself once each month has passed you will see the debt go down. 

    Keep positive 


    2021: debt free , divorced and buying a house !
  • pjcox2005pjcox2005 Forumite
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    Do you know what interest rates each debt is at? If it's all zero and you can pay back £500 a month then hopefully you can make a dent quite quickly.

    If not and high rates, then you may want to look at what you can do to reduce the interest rates, whether call to card providers asking them to do something (explain maternity pay situation) but they may not, or looking to see if you can do balance transfers to low rate cards.

    Main point is you're aware of the debt and trying to sort it so good luck.
  • tacpot12tacpot12 Forumite
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    You can do this. I cleared £12,000 of debt that I had stupidly acquired. It took nearly four years and there were times when it felt either impossible or that I was making no progress, but the sense of achievement when it was paid off was amazing. At £500 per month, you should have your debts cleared in less than two years! 

    Good luck

    The comments I post are my personal opinion. While I try to check everything is correct before posting, I can and do make mistakes, so always try to check official information sources before relying on my posts.
  • RASRAS Forumite
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    Hi Leanne

    Well done for addressing this now.

    You need to know the interest rates charged on each account. It's likely that the overdraft is the highest, so that would be the one to pay off first. But until you have the numbers, it's impossible to tell.
    The person who has not made a mistake, has made nothing
  • Jami74Jami74 Forumite
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    Sorting out your debt while she is so young is absolutely the right time to do it. Young children have no concept of the value of money and while you'll want to spoil her rotten on birthdays and at Christmas and with holidays and trips out it means you can really do it on the cheap and she'll have just as much fun whether you spend a few quid on pre-loved items or hundreds of pounds on new branded stuff. It's harder trying to cut back when they are older and want the same things they see their friends having. You'll have it all paid off within a year or two and you'll be used to living economically so will then have surplus money to budget towards the nicer things. And she'll never know.
    Debt Free: 01/01/2020
  • edited 7 July 2021 at 1:24PM
    draiggochdraiggoch Forumite
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    edited 7 July 2021 at 1:24PM
    It might be a good idea to plan to pay off the new CC in 15 months rather than 8 and use any surplus to reduce the balance of the MBNA card to an even lower level before it runs out of the 0% period. At least it will be less to transfer then including transfer fees. You did not mention the current rate of the third credit card and if this is also on 0%.
  • DrCarrieDrCarrie Forumite
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    You can do this! It will be ok, it might take some time but it will be ok. 

    You have done some good things already! go you!

    Others have given some great advice and ideas. I would recommend the following:

    - join a challenge or 2, stay involved in the forum, it keeps you motivated. 
    - consider writing a debt-free diary
    - enjoy the rest of your Mat leave, and your daughter, time is precious. 
  • CreditCardJunkieCreditCardJunkie Forumite
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    Okay first things first, congratulations on your baby girl.

    Secondly, there is absolutely no shame so please don't be embarrassed. We've all been there and probably a few people you know are or have been in a similar position but debt seems to be a taboo subject.

    I was in exactly the same position as you, having a baby changed my focus and made me address the debt. What I learned was;

    - Give yourself a realistic budget for nice things each month. A family day out/your favourite coffee or something like that. It makes it easier to stick to your plan.

    - Track every single spend on a spreadsheet. You will be horrified but you can quickly see why you've ended up in debt. 

    - Work out your realistic debt free date. The majority of us find ways to beat the target. Prolific surveys are a great way to start by bringing in extra income. If you can do something extra to bring in more money, do it and use that to overpay debts.

    Best of luck, you can absolutely do this!
    Debt Free as of December 2020 👏

    Save 12k in 2023 #35: £2850 / £12,000

    Earn £365 on Prolific in 2023: £53.50 / £365
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