Living on 700 bucks a month: a budgeting overshare.

On the 3rd of each month, I receive a check from the government for about 700 dollars; I live on Social Security Disability Benefits.  If you don’t like to read people’s over-shares, stop here.  But if you enjoy over-shares and budgeting tips, read on.

5 years ago, my depression and anxiety made working almost impossible.  The worst thing was that I could not sleep due to  anxiety.  I would go 4-6 days/nights without one minute of sleep.  I wish that I was making that up.  Trust.  I  tried every medication out there for my depression, anxiety, and insomnia.  Nothing was working.  So I finally  had to quit my job in Boston, and move back up to Vermont with my parents.  It was quite obvious to my parents that I needed some intensive treatment, so they admitted me to a long-term, intensive care psychiatric hospital in Western Mass.  I spent 3 months at The Austin Riggs Center, and while Riggs was an “open hospital,” (meaning that you could come and go–as long as you made it in by a certain time, and were present for your appointments) it was INTENSE.  Living with people who were struggling with the same issues as I, was,  both comforting and disturbing at the same time.   During the 3 months I spent at Riggs, I began the long a laborious process of applying for disability benefits so that when I left, I would have some sort of income until I could get back into the working world.  I had no idea that 5 years later, I would still be relying on disability benefits as my main source of income.  So, the following is how I budget my life on 700 dollars a month. As some of you may know, I am currently living with my parents, so I don’t have to pay rent, and all the bills that come with living on your own.  But the time between when I left Riggs and moved back up here, (about 3 and a half years) I lived on my own, and so most of these tips come from those 3 years, but I still use a lot of them today.

First off, I always put 10% of my monthly income in a savings account for emergencies and so that when it comes time for new clothes, a trip, or whatever comes up that is not expected, I have a small nest egg to withdraw from.

Next is I know my billing cycles. I keep a record of when each of my monthly bills comes in, so I am financially  prepared for it.  Mine looks something like this:

Rent–1st (when I was not living with the rents)

Cell Phone–17th

Credit Card–24th

Electric–14th (again, when I was not living with the rents)

and so on……

I also try to know as accurately as possible how much each bill will be.

For instance, in order to accurately predict how much my cell phone bill will be, I check how many minutes I use  almost daily, so that know exactly how much the bill will be when it arrives in the middle of the month.  I never go over how many minutes my plan allows for.  If I use up all my minutes before the next billing cycle, I turn my phone off and don’t use it, unless there is an emergency.

Keeping my credit card receipts is also helpful.  It’s a reminder of how much I am putting on my card, and a record of how much my bill will be.  I know that this can be done online, but for some reason, having the record in my hands helps keep me from overspending on my card.

After I  budget out my bills money,  I make a list of other monthly necessities, and prioritize them.  Everyone’s necessities are different, but here is what mine look  like:

Food–150/month (when not living with the rents)

Gas–200/month

Toiletries–50/month

Eyebrow wax–20/month

and so on…..

Prioritizing monthly necessities is really helpful–and each month is different.  Some of my necessities, I only have to buy every other month, or even just 4 times a year.  Whatever my necessities are, be it a haircut, or cat litter, prioritizing them allows for me to create a realistic budget.

Whatever is left over after bills and necessities, is my social money.  And if there is anything left over at the end of the month, it goes into the savings account–not to a new “whatever.” (OK, sometimes I cheat on that one)

I am very lucky to have the family support I have.  My parents let me move back in after a life-changing event left me with no place to live and continue my recovery. They are incredibly supportive of me, both emotionally and financially.  No, they do not pay my personal bills for me, nor do they hand out money to me if I want something, but they do put a good, solid roof over my head.   And they would go to the end of the earth to continue to help me recover.  I really hope to get back out on my own within the next 6 months, but I have found that whenever I put a time limit on myself, I crumble under the pressure.   These last few years have been bumpy, but they have certainly taught me how to budget!