ADHD and finances

[areeves789]

Has anyone found any reliable tricks or services to help with managing finances? My finances are horribly in the red! PS-I hate it here!!

[GentleThoughts]

I really benefit from automatic charges just gota make sure I have enough money in that bank account lol but it helps me in case so I dont get overwhelmed to pay things on time. Also, I heard the wall street journal has a helpful Personal Finance section that gives good advice. I've been thinking about hiring a finance advisor to help me out too. I see it as an investment

[ADHDuderino]

I hear ya areeves789! Impulse spending is a terrible burden to our ADHD brains and the commercial world is designed and has billions of dollars invested in the science and application of "catching" us at every turn! "Oooh! Novel looking shiny thing! Newer, shinier, faster! Will DEFINATELY solve 'X' problem for me/help with 'X'" etc. 🙄😵‍💫

I wish I could be more helpful than empathise and know the pain🙄

Although I do find the "challenge" of thrifty-fixing-up/make-it-myself/scrap-build/trash-bashing most stuff I actually need engages my neurodivergent noggin quite well. Usually requires a "How can I solve this..with only this?" out-of-the-box thought or two and the need to at least try and learn a new skill to achieve it. Which of course I rarely master, leading to not a straight edge or level shelf in my entire house, but still, like it says at the end of the movie (I forget which production company it is?) "I made this!"

🌈🦄🐒

If you can do nothing else, be kind

[Prairiefrontporch]

I live way out in the country so I can stop physical shopping but I can’t control my online spending. Two weeks ago I took our visa info off of Amazon and gave my neurotypical husband my two credit cards . We have saved so much money lol .

[Phianoposis33]

Are you are talking about paying your bills on time? I have one credit card, a CITI Visa, that I have everything set up to automatically pay monthly. And then the Credit cards payment is set up to my checking account to be paid automatically monthly. My FICo is 829

I started my 23 year old ADHD son to do this also and his score is 750

Added bonus is my cash back from last year was around $1200 which is always a nice surprise. There are additional bills like hospital/doctor that I have to write a check out for, but at least I'm not having to do all utilities, car payments etc.

Works for us..as far as spending...I can check onlune what my balance is.

[emiL1234]

declare all your credit cards lost, probably you have some memberships you are not aware of. That’s one of the places where the money go. It’s going to show up when you will receive emails saying payment didn’t go through!

[Jozlynn]

Hi areeves789!

I have found that the primary way I personally can stay on track financially is to have someone to be accountable to. For example, my husband and I - who have historically maintained separate accounts and do NOT monitor each others spending - added both of our checking accounts to a budgeting program called Monarch a couple of months ago, because our finances were out of control. In my business, I hired a bookkeeper who has visibility into all my spending, and whom I have to explain my purchases to (not justify - just explain), and that causes me to hesitate and truly evaluate when I'm ready to purchase some course or other unnecessary item. Knowing that I have to explain my choices has been a hugely motivating factor in reducing my nickel and dime spending that winds up getting me in trouble.

Monarch, the budgeting app, breaks your expenses down into categories for you, so you can see how much you've spent on things like eating out that month, for example. Turns out, I was spending well over $200/month on my Candy Crush game (just one example of irresponsible spending) - which is what I turn to when my brain just needs to check out (and I'm incapable of sitting there doing nothing). I felt justified spending money on my game, it calms my brain after all, but NOT that much money.

I honestly had no idea I was going through that much money on my game. Just knowing that my husband is seeing how much I'm blowing on such a frivolous expense has slowed down that "quick draw" finger that hits purchase way too quickly.

I also agree with having all your bills auto-charged, however you'd like that set up. That has saved us a LOT of late fees that we used to get and has also added some cash back in the cases where we charge the bills to our credit card and then pay it off at the end of the month.

Another random tip - when I do a trial of an app or something, I IMMEDIATELY add the date that I need to cancel it to my calendar, so it pops up with a reminder. When that reminder pops up, I cancel it immediately - knowing that I'll forget if I don't. That has saved me countless thousands of dollars, because I'll trial an app and then completely forget I even signed up for it. I also have the bad habit of not wanting to look at my checking account (I'm afraid of what I'll see), so I would miss that I was being charged over and over for something I didn't use. That budgeting program really helped with that!

We are in a really tight financial situation right now and that's what forced us to use a budgeting app, but I've found the insights - and knowing someone else is seeing everything - incredibly helpful for slowing down my online purchases.

I truly hope things get better for you! It's a crap place to be in.

[KCourage]

When I am tempted to buy online, I post to Pinterest. If the need stays over a week, or I even remember, I maybe buy.When I'm out shopping, I always bring a list of what I need. If I see something outside of that list, I write it down, but have to return to buy it on a second trip. Unless it's a necessity I've forgotten, like toothpaste. Also try grocery shopping online, it's harder to pick up extra stuff as you cruise the isles.

Do a budget. Write down all your bills, electric to groceries. Everything. Look at the list wittle it down to the bare necessities. Cut eating out, subscriptions, cable or satellite- anything you can live without. I call this the austerity diet! The point is to find a budget that forces you to find the extra money you will use to pay off your debt. When your paycheck comes in, pay your bills first. Put the extra toward debt. For the rest, take the cash out and put it in envelopes labeled for use: medical co-pays, groceries, hair cut, gas, clothes, fun. When the money is spent, you are done till the next paycheck. It forces thoughtfulness when buying. Hope that helps.

[PinkPanda23 in reply to KCourage]

Excellent response! Do you find it difficult to apply the discipline consistently? I do a lot of what you write already, except that everything goes on one card with cash back that gets paid off each month. Online shopping is my hardest challenge. I save ads to a folder called Potential Buys and look at that periodically to see if time has dimmed an urge to impulse spend, or if I do still need/want the thing. And I deleted any games that allow in-game spending. You can also apply parental controls to yourself if you don't trust yourself late at night when you're mindlessly playing.

[KCourage in reply to PinkPanda23]

The last thing I bought online was a hot wax machine for my arthritic hands. My PT has one and suggested it. I've used it twice. It's too much trouble and I can only do one hand at a time, unlike when I go into the office. And I did my method ahead of time and let the idea sit for a couple of weeks. Like all great ADHDers, I just didn't think it through. A hot pad works just as well. Also like other ADHDers, I have poor working memory. So I keep it on my bathroom counter as a constant reminder. By leaving it there I'm strengthening the memory of yet another purchase regret. It's really helped. Next I think I'll take a picture of it and leave it next to my chair where I normally do my web surfing.

[Mamamichl]

have you contacted dhs (department of human services)? They got my partners credit cards consolidated and cheaper.

[Allie501 in reply to Mamamichl]

I need to make that call! Is it through the county, town, or state?

[Mamamichl in reply to Allie501]

County.

[Allie501 in reply to Mamamichl]

Thank you!