Debt free and staying that way while I re-evaluate life and keep blood sugar levels down 1 January at 10:41PM edited 30 March at 12:52PM in Debt free diaries 149 replies 8.7K views

foxgloves

That's a very interesting story, @Humdinger1, & put me in mind of how somebody I knew many moons ago got into big debt trouble......I should add that only the process + magical thinking reminds me of this person, not you yourself, as tbh, he was a complete kn*b, but it's that self-confidence thing & taking big risks on events that might well have come off, had various adverse circumstances not started to collide with delusion. 
Fair play to you, m'dear for insisting on paying back all your creditors. I must admit to feeling uncomfortable with the advice on these forums that after 6 years, one needn't bother because of statute-barred staus. However, I do understand that this is the only way for many people to get out of debt & to stand a chance of starting again & I do believe everyone deserves a 2nd chance. I know affordability checks -or rather a lack of them being realistically applied - have pushed up personal debt levels, though in my case, lack of personal responsibility regarding money was the key player.
Do you ever find yourself looking back & wishing you'd behaved differently? I definitely do, mostly around the area of savings, but I am usually good at not beating myself up about it. I can't change the past, only learn from it & without wanting to sound like a cheesy greetings card or FB meme, my future rests on my present actions .....or at least those parts of it over which I have any control or agency. Its never too late to stage a financial reformation. Mine came later than many, but earlier than some & like you, I'm happier for it.
F x

Humdinger1

Yes @foxgloves I do sometimes look back and wish I'd had my feet on the ground earlier...but till I perfect my time machine, I can only go forwards.  Even at its worst though, there was a sense of a healthy cleansing of attitude.   One example and no pun intended: I'd had a cleaner for years.  I was very grateful and viewed her as a professional with a totally different skill set from mine.  In the midst of all this, and bearing in mind that DH is a household genius, I sadly concluded that I would have to do my own cleaning.   Imagine that!  When it was all paid off I did hire another but when she retired to Poland and I hired a replacement, I ended up deciding that between 5 of us (DH, DD, 2 stepdaughters and me) we should save money and do it ourselves.  I wrote a reference saying that I didn't want all the young people in the house to imagine that housework was something done by everyone else.  That was a watershed moment.  I came it late as did you but better late than never, eh? Love Humdinger xx 

foxgloves

Yes, definitely. I think Mr F & I would be struggling, with a lot of debty-looking chickens coming home to roost right now, had we not changed our ways. Certainly the reality of navigating public sector austerity cuts (both past & future, as Mr F is also a professional in this sector) had the LBM not come along when it did, would have been very hairy & as we had no savings then, I doubt that we could have carried on servicing all our debts for very long. Definitely better late than never! I would advocate a major change in money habits to anybody in a similar position. 
F x

Humdinger1

So, one thing I've been pondering is whether I'll always worry if I have slightly more money than expected in my current account.   Not that I'm saying it's bad, mind...and I do keep track of spends due later in the month.  But I do start to fret about whether I've missed something that will shortly be biting me in the backside if my balance seems high.  We're not talking thousands here,  by the way.  What I plan to do is to sweep any excess into savings at the end of the month.  Reflecting my previous searing experiences no doubt.

Sun_Addict

That sometimes happens to me despite my meticulous accounting. You can guarantee it’s something I’ve missed, it’s never spare money unfortunately 😞

badmemory

Aren't you glad you are not me.  I can tell you my expected bank account balance at the end of Dec 23 & it isn't looking good.  Although to be fair it is worst case scenario.  But it is defnitely a minus.  I hope a lot of it is because of overestimating but I suspect that any of that may be taken up by underestimating on energy.

Humdinger1

badmemory said:

Aren't you glad you are not me.  I can tell you my expected bank account balance at the end of Dec 23 & it isn't looking good.  Although to be fair it is worst case scenario.  But it is defnitely a minus.  I hope a lot of it is because of overestimating but I suspect that any of that may be taken up by underestimating on energy.

I haven't included energy bills! Maybe I'm right to be fretting!!  Thanks
@Sun_Addict I think @foxgloves finds similar.  Please don't bother getting violins out as they would - as the world's smallest- be rightly invisible to the naked eye.  I suppose I'm berating myself for not holding onto money when the going was good.  I have nothing to complain about but do wish at times I'd seen what was ahead.  Ah well, onwards and upwards love Humdinger xx 

Humdinger1

So, thinking about what I'm doing differently.   Am in a weekly veg box scheme; they do also deliver meat which we have occasionally as it's expensive and I want to have a veg based diet, as far as it's compatible with low carb: determined to reverse diabetes and keep it stay reversed. In the past, I used to feel comforted when I saw that I had lots left over from the previous week, and I revelled in the choice.  However, with DD now at uni and general cost of living, we have a much smaller delivery.  We have a few roots left over each week as I do limit how much of that I cook, and never want to run out of onions.  However, the fruit and greens are - shock horror - totally used up.  I'm reminding myself that this is how it's supposed to work and it's not a sign of scarcity.  Same with the monthly delivery from O*c*d* I keep it to stuff not available elsewhere.   Edamame bean noodles as pasta sub; nuts (weirdly cheaper here than other places) etc.  I am going to go through store-cupboards to see what we have.  Who was it who said something like 'for things to stay the same, they have to change'. I think that might be this year's motto for me.  Onwards and upwards love Humdinger xx 

Sun_Addict

I mainly eat plant based although have the occasional piece of fish. I panic if I start running out of veg but realise it’s there to be used up before it goes off. 

A work colleague completely reversed her type 2 diabetes by going low carb, losing 6 stones in the process, and she looks fantastic. She does presentations for colleagues to talk about how she did it and always gets a good attendance. 

Humdinger1

Thanks  @Sun_Addict.  I hope to hear post- appointment on Tue that I have reversed it; I was on the cusp in Nov.  I've lost over 2 stone since June but close to 5 over a few years....