Let's get this sorted then!

Rhyddid2026

Aarrgghhhh!! Just realised (watching a money podcast) that I took out critical illness cover and income protection when I bought my house but I haven't checked it or updated it since!! 😱

That's going to the top of the to-do list!

I've qualified, changed jobs, and had a few diagnoses since then!

Rhyddid2026

And this is one reason I post my thoughts on here, I'd forgotten about the checks already 🫣

I met my sister for lunch today, which made a nice change. Tacos, fries, nachos, soft drinks and parking has cost £80 for the two of us though. I'd budgeted £20 for myself and it cost double. It'll be a long while before I do that again! Just in a nice food court too, not even a restaurant or anything. I feed myself for a fortnight on less than that!!

Can you tell it's thrown me? 😆

A vntd item I listed last year has just sold, so that's an extra £2 towards any summer clothes I might need.

ArtyJ931

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81969749#Comment_81969749

that is crazy! Was it secretly the ritz?

Rhyddid2026

I wish @ArtyJ931 !!

I have to admit the food was delicious and my sister is very fussy, so it might be the first time in about 10 years that we've both loved all of the food we ordered. So in some ways worth it, but maybe for a special occasion or something. Maybe I'll count it as my birthday meal a month early.

I've now found my critical illness info, logged in successfully, realised I don't have income protection insurance, realised none of the info has been updated since I took it out in 2018, and send them a message asking for someone to contact me to update it and talk through any differences it will make. I'll find out about income protection as well, because I'm on my own and nobody is coming to save me if I can't work. I don't want to lose my house, I can't imagine they'd let me have my animals if I had to move in to a homeless hostel.

Rhyddid2026

Another exhausting day at work, with around 9 hours of driving. This means very little work has been done so I need to do a couple of hours this evening so it doesn't build up too much. I had to have a nap first though.

I'm starting to feel a bit tired and fed up with everything. I think I need to allow myself to spend some money soon, get a few things fixed in the house or replace something that desperately needs replacing. I'm going to run out of energy and motivation soon. I know I've done well with the debt repayments but this promotion has been really exhausting and I think I need to see something that makes it worthwhile to keep me going. Something I can actually see.

Hopefully if I think carefully and plan what I want to spend on (maybe a hundred or two, which I would usually over pay debts with), it can prevent me hitting the f*** it button.

I do have my mini holiday to look forward to though, and that might replenish some energy, so I'll consider the spends after that in case it's enough to keep me going for a few more months.

My washing machine is hanging on by a thread and often doesn't drain or spin properly, my watch is hanging on and I've been thinking about replacing it for about a year - the battery only lasts about 2 days now, and my phone is having to be restarted up to 6 times a day. I won't replace all of those things but I think I need to spend some money on something that will make my day to day life a little less annoying or a little more pleasurable. Or maybe getting my drains unblocked properly so I don't have to keep doing it by hand every couple of weeks.

I am absolutely exhausted.

Dakota_Rose

For someone who hangs on to broken down things for far too long, I’d say get a replacement for something (phone?) sorted. If you don’t spend on one of them soon, you can guarantee they’ll all fully break at the same time and then you really will feel the burn of the money going out.

Try to be kind to yourself. Burn out at work is unsustainable, but like you say, if you start to feel the benefit of the extra effort, it will give you motivation to keep going. As long as bills and basic debt repayments are covered, the odd break is okay.

FootyFanDan

I agree with @Dakota_Rose . I do think you have done amazing to have made the progress you have, it usually starts with a massive burst at the start but you do have to also find a balance so you can start seeing the benefits of the hard work. If you can see that the promotion is giving you the chance to have a more balanced approach it could be motivation. Please be kind to yourself and make sure your not just putting everything in to work with no real reward for you.

vampirotoothus

Hi, I'd go for a new phone (re-furbished maybe), as our lives tend to be on the phone so much now. If it breaks completely that will be a real nuisance. V x

PennysIntoPounds

Chiming in to agree with others that you need a treat before you burn out.

How about 50 in a pot for phone/watch/washing machine/drains, and 50 for nice food and drinks and a book and doing absolutely nothing all weekend?

Rhyddid2026

I might get a quote for the drains Pip because they shouldn't cost too much to do. The quote is free and at least then I'll know how soon I can afford them.

Thanks everyone, I thought I had been quite balanced and made sure I'd done some nice little things regularly, but I definitely think I need a bigger boost at the moment. I'll think about it all in May after a bank holiday weekend of sunshine with friends. That might be enough (although the new boss has booked in a meeting at 8:30am on the Tuesday after bank holiday, the sadist!).

Now I've had a nap and I am a little less grumpy I've decided to list the financial goals I've achieved so far this year (2026) -

1st milestone – debts plus student loan total under 60k ✔️

2nd milestone - got EF to £1,000 ✔️

3rd milestone – got NW2 credit card under 5k ✔️

4th milestone - Increased pension payments to 10% of wages ✔️

5th milestone – Overdraft down to £100 ✔️

6th milestone - saved £1,750 in emergency fund (one month’s expenses) ✔️

7th milestone – Overdraft down to £50 buffer which is 0% will be ignored ✔️

9th milestone – NW2 credit card to 4k ✔️

In the words of Brucey - didn't she do well!

Hopefully in the next 2 weeks I'll achieve my 10th milestone - debt under 25k (not including student loan or mortgage obvs). After that might be a good time to spend some money on something that will make my life easier.