Discussion How many of us have financial problems?

[graysme]

How many of us have financial problems? And for those who have them, would you consider them the number one reason for your depression?

Honestly, since I was born I always suffered from huge financial instability. Since I was a kid money has always given me anxiety; I remember when I'd go grocery shopping with my mom, at the counter I'd cover my ears with my hands to not hear the cashier say the price of what we were buying. I think it's one of the major reasons why I think of CTB from time to time. Working on it also gives me a reason to go forward though (can't wait to finish my degree). Does anyone else also live to see what life would be like feeling ok about money?

 

[ilovemymelody1998]

I would say I have financial issues and complicated feelings around money. It definitely is a factor in lots of areas of my life. :/ For school, I am going into a field I have little to no interest in because I want to secure financial stability (if I live up to that point). I'm generally anxious about overspending and just finished budgeting my paycheck tonight. I think it also gives me overspending issues and makes me overtly frugal in other areas. Ahh..it's a mess. I think if I couldn't have a stable source of income, it would push me over the edge. One of my biggest fears is having a failed suicide attempt and having to deal with the consequences of quitting my job for before the attempt. I want to leave, but I'm scared that I might have a non fatal attempt and I'll only have a destroyed life in the end (because I'd like to leave with as little burden to others..so I have plans to save up money, sell my car, prepare my goodbye materials, sell my material possessions, withdraw from school, quit my job in advance, break up with bf, etc)

 

[Hoga]

Me, that's the reason I'm going to CTB today or tomorrow.

 

[uglyugly]

Severe. In my lifetime, I've owned two homes (one at a time) and due to inflation, skyrocketing property taxes, and very low income, I am very, very worried I am going to become homeless. I have been looking for a second or better job, but I am so damn discouraged and depressed and exhausted that it is hard to do. The idea that I will lose my home, my pets, and everything I own and be forced onto the streets to sleep, piss and crap there in my mid 50s in a city with an actual winter is enough to get me planning to ctb. Quality of life is more important than quantity, and I'm too old to sleep behind dumpsters in December.

I've started a method of tracking every single bit of spending I do in one month, calculating to the penny. It has been very insightful and I've learned that I am spending too much on junk food and impulse buys. So, those are things I need to stop. I prefer to keep my house over having potato chips, you know? Not sure that will save me - it won't - but at least I feel like I am attempting to take control and do something to avoid being homeless. I'm trying to go all of September without buying food and replying on dumpster diving, my garden, and whatever free food someone dumps off at work.

 

[Degen]

I will for the rest of my 20s and at minimum early to mid 30s. Likely for life as I'll probably have to retire early and become a caregiver to a disabled family member til they die and then go on some low level state pension myself barely scraping an existence.
Unless I ctb early to avoid the ensuing misery.

 

[nibbleone]

This is a problem for me. I may owe the IRS a lot. It's really confusing because of cryptocurrency. I go to Debtors Anonymous and it helps some. PM me for link.

 

[sleepyg614]

Yeah, in all honestly it's one of the biggest reasons for me. Of course there's so many, but it's up there. I think everyday "we're not meant to live this way." I feel like a slave, I can't go a single day without thinking about money. 23 years old and I cant even afford to get groceries. $11 in my bank account today. Seeing people make millions off the internet for doing nothing makes it worse, too. But if I woke up tomorrow with a billion dollars, I'd still want to ctb. I don't think anything could ever change my mind or my heart

 

[dimgobaith]

One of the reasons but the person that caused them through job loss and additional income loss I blame more

 

[nihilistic_dragon]

I struggle with this. But it is merely one of the many, many, many reasons I want to ctb.

 

[fatladysings]

Financial issues are one of the reasons for me ctb'ing. I have schizoaffective disorder and live on benefits. I live with my mum and when she dies I will not have enough money to keep the house warm, and I'd rather be dead than live a life where I spend all day shivering and not being able to afford to switch the heating on.

I do think the amount of benefits I receive is fair because I get free money for sitting at home all day twiddling my thumbs (I can't work as I hear voices). I don't think it would be fair to give me more money when I don't do anything to earn it. I'm lucky to live in a civilised society that supports the mentally ill. However, although I think it wouldn't be fair to pay me more benefits, having to live on such a small amount of money is one of the two main factors that are causing me to ctb once my mum dies (the other main factor is the voices).

 

[justamirror]

one of the reasons for me. I'm about to be homeless and have no family or friends to lean on (in a different state and dont have any friends lol). I have to donate plasma just to get by and buy food/pay my phone bill. My food stamps is all messed up and don't get anything even though I don't work right now (I keep calling and calling but they tell me I'm in a que to get help and wait for my social worker - its been two weeks lol). I'm behind on my rent and will be having an eviction on my record which means I cant rent anywhere else for years.

I'm a veteran and even veteran crisis prevention organizations refuse to help me (I have tried all in my state). I was denied rental assistance a lil bit ago, even when I had eviction court date paperwork in hand and had found a job, finally telling me I'm ineligible and they refused to tell me why. I think they only really help people who are already homeless this eviction prevention stuff they talk about is fake.

I cant even afford to buy SN right now so I cant CTB yet ... all my money goes to food and just had to pay my phone bill. I'm just gonna skip some food and buy SN next time I donate plasma.

Me and my highly dysfunctional family have been poor all our lives living in trailer parks and rentals. I have no skills society wants to get me out of poverty. Just some low level manufacturing/warehouse work, forklift work, and some retail work along with a combat position in the military. I'm useless to my society just a body.

I suspect in a matter of years, if I don't CTB, I probably wont be able to afford rent anywhere... Wages don't increase and everything else does. We are being scammed by our government they have been playing the long game and slowly filtering out the undesirables.

 

[Nikitatos]

#1 reason for me is money.
#2 is health.

When you're too sick to work, you run out of money eventually. I should have gotten on disability years ago, I didn't want to be a burden to society and I thought things would turn around. Should have known the deep state was going to beat me to death.

 

[Danby]

Far and away the biggest reason for my depression--the others aren't even close.

 

[offbalance]

How many of us have financial problems? And for those who have them, would you consider them the number one reason for your depression?

Honestly, since I was born I always suffered from huge financial instability. Since I was a kid money has always given me anxiety; I remember when I'd go grocery shopping with my mom, at the counter I'd cover my ears with my hands to not hear the cashier say the price of what we were buying. I think it's one of the major reasons why I think of CTB from time to time. Working on it also gives me a reason to go forward though (can't wait to finish my degree). Does anyone else also live to see what life would be like feeling ok about money?

Me. Never was able to work without burdening my workplace (being late or absent and otherwise just not working effectively due to depression and psychosis) so now I'm in the process of applying for disability which I know will pay peanuts but oh well I guess.

 

[voc_89]

i kinda still do. I grew up as upper middle class. Then my parent who was the bread winner got sick. Cancer. Um it was very aggressive. After it was recognised.... they passed after 3 years. At the time my parents just finished building a new house. We had it all. 2 newish cars (maybe 2 - 4 years old each). Big yard (i think the land in general was 1.5 - 2 acres). 5 bedroom house with multiple other rooms (den, living room, family room, kitchen, balconies, etc.). Then it went to shit. Medical bills are a bitch (alongside a mortgage). There were times I had to walk to school (maybe 10 miles) else there was no well money left over for me to eat. Lol. I remember times were i was eating rice and butter or flour and sugar as lunch over the weekend. And times I was a lunch gofer for 'friends' in exchange for a dollar to get 2 bread and butter (this was an actual thing in the high school I was in... cost about $1.50) for lunch at school.... I was a malnourished in my teen years. Alongside the multiple calls from debtors about not meeting loan obligations. With the grief of my parent and the shit life I was living I wrote my letter at the time. But it was found out. So i played it off and stayed. But every single day I wake up. My first thought is. WHY IN TF ARE U STILL HERE!?!?! I told myself... if I am still alive its because I can live a life where I can be okay. Just that okay. For a large part I was doing that till 2023. When I joined this site. I messed up in 2022. Made a huge financial loss. And then in 2023 i got into a car (only remaining asset) accident and I was not sure how it was going to go (at the time switched insurance to third party and the person WHO HIT ME claimed I was wrong... and my car damages were about $US 10k). I was like fk it. I have nothing to go on. Its time. But That same year I got a promotion. About a 40 - 50% salary increase. So I am here. Slowly recovering from the mistakes I made in 2022. Should be fully over it all by 2026. My entire reason to being here is financial. Once that is gone. I am out.

 

[TakeMeToHeaven]

many people are one paycheck away from homelessness