Is it every really possible to get ahead?

It can be really hard to get ahead...the system tends to be built by and for those on top. I can't guarantee it'll help, but have you looked at the book "Your Money or Your Life"? I found it really helpful, although it's not for everyone.

I know what you mean. Sometimes it feels like no matter how hard we try, we're just spinning our wheels. In your case, it will get better soon, though. Your daughter's education is a great investment in her future, and she'll be able to be mroe stable and everything in a few more years - you just have to survive them.

it is very difficult in this day and age to get ahead or stay afloat even. hubby works full time, i work part plus babysit and freelance write and we shop at thrift stores and garage sales plus we grocery shop at a surplus...we go out to eat very seldom, visit the library for movies and books for our entertainment, but still we struggle... so i know how you feel...

I have seen a many of times that we were getting ahead and then someting come up and take everything we had put up. I usually got so upset and my husband would say well we better be glad we had it put up or we would have been in a bigger mess. So I think we just barely keep our heads up above the water. LOL

I am a firm believer that education is the one thing worth getting loans for - even if she is not eligible for the government loans, there are always private ones that may be worth considering. Student loans have lower percentage rates than any credit card, so if your other option is getting back into credit card debt then student loans make more sense. I myself was "fortunate" enough to have been married and was not considered a dependent - of course, having financed my own education I am now stuck with paying it back. Still, paying it back is a lot easier with the work I can get with the degree than it would have been to go through life without school. Paying for school is most difficult for the middle class - you earn too much to get free help, but not enough to easily afford an education. Many people I know have struggled with it, but there are several ways to make it easier. Your daughter can work part-time while going to school, and student loans can keep you from getting into other debt that will cost more than the loans. I know some young people who elected to go to a very cheap local school for the first two years prior to switching to a more expensive and "higher class" school. Of course there are also scholarship programs - some are merit based, some are need-based, some are both. I congratulate you in your efforts to support your child's education, and wish you the best of luck!

I hear you! I sware the systems are set up that way. My daughter was a special needs child. I was told she could not receive disability because I made too much money. Trust me I am about low middle income. Than the money they said I would make if I didn't work was $500 a month. Who the hell can live on that. It was a damned if you do, damned if you don't. I feel your pain!