Beautiful day. I have never done anything like this before and am not sure exactly what information I should include. I have never asked anyone for help, but I have found myself in a position where my pride must be sacrificed to help my family. So, I guess I will just begin.
Both my husband and I have jobs and despite not having an income that would allow us to have a mortgage or even rent (our house is paid for, but it is only worth about $10,000), we usually live paycheck to paycheck and have some money left over to eat out and occasionally have money to purchase something we want and not just need. So, what is the problem now, you ask? Besides inflation, that we have all become subject to, my husband unexpectedly started experiencing back issues to the point that he could barely walk. He is a truck driver by trade and could not drive. After going to several doctors and having CT’s and MRI’s we found out that he has several bulging discs and pinched nerves. He has been getting shots in his back and they are supposed to cauterize nerves. After seeing a chiropractor and starting the shots he was able to start back to work. Not consistently, but bringing in something, this was after about two months. Then he was bit by a German Sheppard in the hand. He received twelve stiches in his hand, the palm. And it also got infected. So, there was another month without work. You cannot shift gears with a dog bite in your hand. So, where we were normally using two incomes to pay for bills, we only had one. We did everything we could to stay afloat. I used my bonus to pay for bills and we sold what we could to pay bills. I had planned to use my bonus to pay off a couple of small credit cards. He is now back at work full time, but not getting a 40-hours per week. I have also been having medical issues and missed work due to that. I have been trying to just suck it up and work. I have something wrong with my arms, they say a lot of things, but they still hurt. I also suffer from PTSD, anxiety, and migraines. Since we have been married, we have never had any huge financial problems and it is distressing. This year we will have been married 13 years.
Now, the finances. I pay for everything I can with the money we have. While he was out of work, I used a credit card to pay for our bills or to buy groceries, stuff like that. Before that we used the credit card to update our bathroom, which the hot water heater does not work properly. That is another story. But I was not initially worried about the credit card because before, when he was working, I was able to make the monthly payment. Now I am not able to keep up with the minimum amount due. I cannot make the payment. I owe $18,000 just on this one credit card. Just to kind of give you an idea of what we also have I have a solar panel payment, I still owe $17,000 on those and I have a 401K Loan, there are a few other small things, but nothing that is a huge deal, the others are minimal, and two are almost paid, and I haven’t been charging anything else. If I do not have the money in my checking account, we do not get it, even if we need it. Oh, and the solar panels made a tremendous monetary impact on our electricity bill. Also, our house is falling. Parts of the house are sitting on the ground; my house is peer and beam. There is a huge hole in the laundry room where the roof leaks. We have tried numerous times to fix the roof and we cannot get it to stop leaking. And now there is not only a hole in the ceiling but one in the floor from the leak. I am sure we have black mold; we have just been ignoring it because we cannot do anything about it. I cannot push the washer and dryer all the way back because the floor is so weak, plus there is that hole. We were in a position where we were trying to save money to build a new house, one that does not leak or sit on the dirt. Now that is out of the question until I can at least get the credit card paid off.
Anything anyone could help me with would be appreciated. I am not looking to take advantage of anyone, and I feel bad even asking for help. I just did not know what else to do. If my husband had been able to work, we would not be in this circumstance.
Thank you so much for reading,
Tammy
Pay pal: Tammy Brock@TammyHolder563