How I Started Saving Money

I am currently 24 years of age, until November when I turn 25.

Most of my life I have always been the money saver in my family, even when I was a child, I used to do chores and I even designed jewellery that I would sell to friends and family.

All the money I earned I would save, it would take me a long time but I would save up to $200, which is a hell of a lot of money as a child.

But for the last 6 years I was in an emotional and sexually abusive relationship, he was extremely controlling, I was already extremely invested in him before he started trying to coerce me into having sexual relations with other men and film it for him.

I never did, anyway he was also extremely controlling of my money, we didn’t live together, but if I wanted to buy anything I would need his permission, I would actually have to write out a list of reasons to convince him to let me buy something I wanted, and I would have to make it benefit him somehow.

Anyway I am recently single, my choice, it took me years to figure out what he was doing to me, before I started noticing getting worse and effecting me more.

And then it took months for me to get the courage to actually leave him, it has been a terrifying situation, I am currently being stalked and harassed by him, I will be moving to a different state to be closer to my family in November so hopefully by then I will be fully free from him.

Back to the conversation at hand, I was not allowed to save money, I tried, I had an emergency fund, my dog Kenzie tends to get sick often, fake pregnancy, grass seed lodged in her skin, etc, so taking her to the vet regularly gets costly.

So I started putting money into an emergency fund for when situations such as that happened, every payday I would put $50 to $100 away into the fund.

Then I begun getting migraines, severe ones, found out I needed bifocal anti-fatigue glasses, and not cheap ones.

When we went to buy them they told me they would cost $320, I could already see him cringing and then the bombshell.

I said that would be fine, that I have the money.

Don’t get me wrong he already knew I had a emergency fund account and that I was putting money into it every pay, he was fine with it for the fact that he wouldn’t have to pay any vet fees when I got them.

But he didn’t know that I had saved up $600 in there at the time, and when he found out he started ranting and raving about secret bank accounts, in front of everyone in the store.

It was embarrassing to say the least, however I threw it back in his face, saying “well would you like to pay for them? Then stop complaining because you get to keep your money” he quickly became quiet after that, however I would pay for it later in private (more emotional abuse).

Now that I am single I am relishing in the fact that I no longer need to get permission to do anything with my money, especially saving it.

He always hated me saving money, because he never liked to, he was the spend first, panic later type, but not me, I’m the budget first, save second and spend wisely with some splurge.

He saw it as a way that I was improving myself and my life, that it was helping me become independent from him, which trust me a manipulative narcissist does not like, he was resenting me for it.

And now I am starting to save serious amounts.

In 3 months I have saved $2,300, which has been very tough, I won’t lie about that but the fact that I managed it is what matters.

$2,300 by SavingSmartly.

(Just so you know I am in Australia, so this is $2,300 in all $50 Australian Notes).

And one of the big reasons I managed to save it is because I take the money out of my bank account.

If I leave it in my bank I spend it, all these online shops that just suck me in, such as Booktopia, Spotlight and JB-HI-FI, etc.

If I have the money locked away out of sight and not in my bank, I tend to save it much better.

Now you may be wondering how I managed to save such an amount in that time.

I designed myself finance printables.

If you want to learn more check out my other posts.

Kind Regards, Nicola.