Briefly, I have bipolar 2 and have struggled with it for about 20 years. I'm in my mid thirties and moved back to my hometown last year because I've been having a really tough few years and thought things would be easier here. Problem is, I'm making about half as much money as I used to, but my bills aren't that much less. The job I have is good experience and will help me in the long run, but for right now the pay is crap.

I make about $1300 take home pay, and my rent is $890. That's obviously the biggest expense, but in order to move somewhere cheaper I'd still have to come up with about $2000 for first, last, and security. So I'm on food stamps, I get a discounted bus pass, I don't have WiFi, and I have a relative in the psychiatric field who can get me samples of my more expensive prescription.

I'm trying to start an Etsy store because I'm an artist, but I doubt I'll see any real money from that for a while. My meds make me so tired all the time that I really don't think I can handle a second job.

Every time I spend on something unnecessary - recently I bought some plants and a new bra - it means that I'm scrambling the first week of the month trying to come up with rent. I don't have enough to cover it, and I don't know what to do anymore. My parents don't have much and have already helped so often, my siblings don't have anything to spare, I don't have good credit so I can't get a loan.

Otherwise my life is pretty good. I'm not feeling too bad, I have friends, I like my job. I'm just broke all the time, and the stress makes me anxious and depressed. I don't know what to do.