Ever have those nights of insomnia due to the budget?

[zakity]

Yeah... But it is because I have (inherited) OCD issues related to money. It isn't because things aren't paid, I coudln't deal with that. I would be in a rubber room wearing a nice white jacket (you know, the one where you hug yourself) if things weren't paid. It is more like "did I remember to pay something" or figuring out how to pay for this or that or trying to figure out where else we could cut.

[bookwormpeg]

Been there...done that...it's not fun. I don't think I slept good for 20 years until I divorce the problem....my ex...he had no money sense...he could care less if the bills were paid...didn't understand that just because the bank says the balance is $100, it just means the check I wrote to the electric company hasn't hit the bank yet...he would take out $50 and then the check to the electric would bounce. It would be my problem to fix. I lived in fear everyday worrying how I was going to pay the bills and put food on the table. I am remarried and my hubby handles the bills and he is an excellent money manager and I don't have to worry. I sleep so much better and am so much happier.

[Beejay]

I'm having that right now.

Well, part of it might be indigestion, but the budget certainly was at the forefront of my thoughts.

I sent out an email to the guy who set us up with mortgage protection on the house and now I'm waiting to hear back from him about it. I'll be calling the cable company tomorrow morning and requesting that the package be reduced to digital basic with a $5 addon (which will still be $50 cheaper than it is now). I went ahead and removed two addons we had on the cell phones for now... one of which was $12 a month and the other was $8 a month, so we'll see improvements on that starting Jan 2nd. Other than that, we have nothing much else to cut.

We got a letter of reassessment about the taxes last week and we'll be experiencing some changes in the income due to it. I'm not sure how much it'll be right now, but I'm bracing for that too.

DH is four weeks smoke free! He's doing great now, though he still craves salt and the popcorn sort of helps a bit with that.

The other big thing we have to worry about right now is the credit card bill. We'll be receiving a biannual payment which is going to all go onto the credit card, but the balance is still over $7k. Oy. This is why I want to go back to work.

But as of now, we're in full lockdown with variable spending. We're a month behind with all expenses, which is not good. But, it's not bad either. We can slowly catch up and take it easy. My anxiety doesn't like it, but it's the best that we can do.

I would say that this is the worst shape that we've been in in a very, very long time. DH's work disability really hit us hard and if it happens again, I'm not sure what we're going to do. I've prepared myself to sell the house if need be.

Now I just have to resign myself to admitting that we've hit bottom and need to suck it up in order to move forward.

Have actually laid in bed and cried over my debt situation. It seems that sometimes I could actually feel a weight settle on me, a heavy spirit of darkness. But, I have learned to dispel that darkness by thanking God for the blessings and good things in my life. One big blessing is that I have family who loves me and would never let me go hungry or homeless, if it ever came to that. Also, blessed that I have enough income to to take care of my bills each month, along with the essential things. My health is fairly good. (waaay to plump though! ) LOL. Working on that. My loved ones are all well. Remembering these blessings ALWAYS lifts my spirits. I also get out my Bible and turn to the book of Psalms. This always encourages me.

[MomToTwoBoys]

Well, DH is on board with the changes!

I'm currently searching for life insurance to cover the amount the mortgage protection would pay on the house. Cable is being cancelled tomorrow morning and the phone thing is a go. He's also okay with cancelling his gaming subscription.

With these savings alone, we'll be looking at about $2400 a year!

[Wendy99]

Yes I get those nights frequently; however not just about finances. Since we started our budget at the start of November I've been less stressed about money (although there is less of it than what I thought), probably because I feel in control of it regardless of how little there is - I know where it's going. It's just not slipping through my hands. I understand completely what you're going through and hope that with those changes you'll be able to sleep a little better

[kae]

I absolutely have those nights, where I toss and turn and wonder how I'm going to make everything work. It's very debilitating sometimes. I also have a pretty tough, demanding job, which pays well (in fact, it is a big reason why I'm in debt- instead of increasing payments on student loan and car debts, I increased my spending) but takes a huge toll on my mental health. I'm on anti-anxiety and anti-depressant medication, including Xanax when things get too overwhelming. ((HUGS))

[MomToTwoBoys]

I just wanted you guys to know that I have been in this situation before and while it's not a foreign concept, I have made it back to being in the black with drive and determination.

DH and I were $9,500 in debt with the mortgage at one point in time. It took us two years to pay that off.

We had spent years in overdraft before. We haven't been back there in three years.

Part of my insomnia is with DH not being on board with things and part of it is just my general financial worry. I know that everyone here has been in my situation before or else you wouldn't be here, ya know? So anyone exercising judgement about things I've posted in the past compared to where I am now has absolutely NO idea what I've done to get back to being a non-insomniac.

On that note, things are actually pretty great now. DH and I have a plan that we've put into motion and the CC debt is at the forefront of our financial plan. We're also putting $100/mo into an automotive savings and once DS13 gets his disability tax credit going, he'll have a nice cushion of savings that'll be added to each month on top of that.

I have never been one to like living paycheck to paycheck, but it's what I've grown up with all of my life. I guess I just got comfortable with things when we had no debt that when DH got injured, it really took me a long time to realize that things needed to be changed again.

[Anna43]

I've been married 51 years. Every little recession my dh ended up unemployed. First time 6 months, next time 1 year, third time 3 (YES THREE) years. The 3 years came on the heels of a tornado and having to build a new home. And when we were finally turning our finances around, he became totally disabled. So I understand financial and emotional stress. Thru it all I've learned to pray and trust in the Lord. Hey, it worked. We never went hungry, never were homeless, always have had what we needed.

You are on the right track in reducing expenses. It is easier to cut expenses than to earn more in the current economy. Challenge yourself before you spend a single penny. Make a budget based on current income and then sit down with your dh to discuss to be sure you're both on the same page.

[MomToTwoBoys]

So a small update:

I had the cable reduced today and amazingly, we're paying $59 a month for basic cable and internet as opposed to $135. I'll take that savings and if we went with just internet, we'd be paying only $7 less per month.

I got a phone call this morning from the developmental evaluation center that DS13 got his diagnosis from and they'd moved, so they gave me the new address and I had to resend the request letter for the report that they'd done up. That'll take a few weeks to come back, so I'm waiting on that for now.

Tomorrow, I'm calling about term life insurance through the same bank that does my Mastercard. My bank that I have my chequing and savings accounts through does not do life insurance that I'm looking for, so this will work as well. I'll have to get a check-up at a walk-in clinic, but I can do that on a Saturday without dragging the kids out. Bonus!

But we got socked with a big repair bill for the van this afternoon. $831... We're working on getting that taken care of and it'll be okay.

I paid about $240 on the credit card this morning and another $88 on it on December 31st, so we're on the road to paying off the credit card. At the moment, it sits just about $7k but even if I put $100 a month onto it, it's still going to help pay it down and keep our spending in check. The credit card no longer travels with me to the mall.