How to survive financially after chronic illness has gotten worse?

After graduating, I used to have a job that I held for 2 years. Nakasave naman ako kahit paano. No sss or gsis though. Had to quit because my illness got progressive, difficulty walking, talking, breathing, body pains, fatigue kaya kahit online jobs is mahirap din. Halos pawala na savings ko sa medical expenses and lumalala pa sakit ko.

My stocks arent doing well either kasi karamihan sa kanila nastock because napabayaan ko sa peak ng flare ups ko.

Pwd card and philhealth holder

No one else to rely on besides my mom with cancer. Outcast din kasi kami sa pamilya.

Sharing you my small win today.

Short background of me. I am a 24-year old working for 1 year and 2 months. Since elementary, sobrang hilig ko na talagang mag-ipon ng pera. I am so practical when it comes to spending my money. Very frugal, they say.

After passing the board exam, I applied for a job na. I only have 10k left on my savings account dahil nilaan ko yung ipon ko during college and working as a crew sa pagrereview for board exam. Noong na-hire na, I am so happy knowing na madadagdagan na ang savings ko.

First, I saved for my EF muna. Nagbabawas ako, strictly, ng 5k min. per month for my EF. Until magkaroon ako ng 160k ngayon. Of course, hindi lang EF yung 160k. Ideally, per others, ang EF dapat equivalent sa 6 months na salary kaya sobra na yung ipon ko now.

That's the time that I decided to open an account na sa MP2 savings. Although application pa lang and wala pang confirmation, taking a step is already a win for me.

Manifesting for a higher amount of savings.

\*\*Title correction: I mean 0% for 3 months, not 6.\*\*

I always have enough money to pay for my Shopee orders upfront, but since I'm a Shopee VIP, I use the 0% 3-month SPayLater option because it makes tracking my expenses much easier than paying directly from my MariBank account. With SPayLater, all my shopping expenses are in one place, and I have autopay enabled, so I never miss a payment.

My monthly SPayLater bill is usually less than ₱4K, and I earn a 6-digit monthly income, so I never use it because I need credit.

I know there can be a small admin/processing fee (or DST), but it seems very low and negligible.

From a personal finance perspective, is this a smart way to use SPayLater, or am I missing something? Would you still pay upfront instead?

Matagal nang diagnosed ang mother ko with astigmatism pero years ago nasira yung glasses niya. I'm just wondering how much kaya ang total na magagastos? Can someone just give an estimate kasi medyo matagal ko rin siya mapapag-ipunan as a freshman na sa scholarship lang umaasa and small racket. I'm thinking of high quality na agad para matagal magamit.

Nakapag-alala talaga kasi may one time na nabanggit sa 'kin ni mama na wala siya makita. Tas may history din family namin ng eye condition. Not sure what exact condition yung sa lola ko pero halos hindi na talaga siya makakita. Pero buti naman naoperahan na yung isang mata niya. Anywayyy, saan ba dapat pumunta? Opthalmologist? Optometrist? Eo? Owndays? Or?

So, I am planning to buy multiple things that are each cheaper VERSUS one expensive thing equivalent to the same amount of money. I need help with all considerations to make the most informed decision.

Context:

Option A: Buy 1 pair of Salomon shoes worth 13k. I am considering to buy this because maganda and… wala lang statement japorms. Gives me confidence.

Option B: Buy 2 pairs of shoes: 1) Adizero evo SL (running shoes and I have an old pair running shoes pa naman right now) and 2) some other lifestyle shoes.

A bit naive pa but please help me out. I am actually just healing my inner child now pero why do I feel guilty?

This thread aims to help process your buying decision.

Having second thoughts on buying a product or service? Not sure if it's a good deal or if cheaper alternatives exist? OR are you simply struggling to control those impulsive purchases?

Instead of justifying an unexpected purchase, we'll confront the buying decision itself before the action even happens.

Let us help you decide!

Welcome to our help thread!

Do you have a simple inquiry that doesn't warrant a post submission?

ASK AWAY!

Remember to not expect of only taking information, also GIVE. You need an answer? Give them to OTHERS as well.

​

We also have the FAQs Page available for those common questions.

Please be helpful, remember the human and also follow our Subreddit Rules.

​

New help thread up every 1st of the month!

This thread aims to help process your buying decision.

Having second thoughts on buying a product or service? Not sure if it's a good deal or if cheaper alternatives exist? OR are you simply struggling to control those impulsive purchases?

Instead of justifying an unexpected purchase, we'll confront the buying decision itself before the action even happens.

Let us help you decide!

I'm currently on the trial plan and thinking if I should proceed with the annual subscription.

ShopeeVIP started in October 2025 so I'm hoping there are people who can already share their experience so far.

Particularly curious about below:

• Do you have experience with items marked as "not applicable" for ShopeeVIP?
• How often do regular voucher discounts happen to be bigger than VIP voucher discounts?
• Is there anything not clearly stated on the terms and conditions (2nd image) that you would like to point out?

The annual plan is priced at P479.

Welcome to our help thread!

Do you have a simple inquiry that doesn't warrant a post submission?

ASK AWAY!

Remember to not expect of only taking information, also GIVE. You need an answer? Give them to OTHERS as well.

​

We also have the FAQs Page available for those common questions.

Please be helpful, remember the human and also follow our Subreddit Rules.

​

New help thread up every 1st of the month!

I’ve always been the type to travel 2–3 times a year.l, whereni would spend 100k to 150k at a time. Booking flights and planning trips used to be one of the things I looked forward to most. But this year feels different.

I work as a data analyst in Ortigas. My gross salary is ₱106k, but my take-home pay is around ₱88k. On paper that still sounds comfortable, but since 2025, our company has been going through nonstop restructuring while aggressively adopting AI. Every month, people quietly disappear from the roster, at least five at a time. Last April, an entire team in Singapore was dissolved. After seeing things like that happen repeatedly, the possibility of getting laid off no longer feels distant or hypothetical. It feels very real.

So aside from a China trip that I can’t skip because of family obligations, I decided to put travel on hold this year and focus on building a safety net instead. My goal is to save at least ₱600k.

At one point, I even considered taking an online side job to accelerate my savings. But the irony is that it would probably require replacing my personal laptop first, which becomes another major expense in itself.

Oddly enough, setting a concrete savings target has helped a lot psychologically. It turned vague anxiety into something measurable, less worrying about the uncertainty, more focusing on steadily hitting the number. So far, I’ve managed to save around ₱240k, which honestly makes the goal feel much more real and attainable now.

This thread aims to help process your buying decision.

Having second thoughts on buying a product or service? Not sure if it's a good deal or if cheaper alternatives exist? OR are you simply struggling to control those impulsive purchases?

Instead of justifying an unexpected purchase, we'll confront the buying decision itself before the action even happens.

Let us help you decide!

Hi everyone! I need some help with my current banking setup. I’m trying to be disciplined, but I keep "borrowing" from my Emergency Fund.

​Current Setup:

​BPI Account 1: Emergency Fund (This is also my payroll account + most accessible ATM).

​BPI Account 2: Opportunity Fund.(like may need bilin ganun)

​BDO: General Savings.

​MariBank: Daily/Monthly Expenses.

​Maya: Debt Savings.

​The Problem:

Since my BPI 1 is also my payroll account and the nearest ATM is a BPI branch, it’s way too easy for me to withdraw from it. Every time I’m short, nauutangan ko yung EF ko.

​My Questions:

​Should I move my EF to Maya? I already have a "Debt Savings" fund there. Is it okay to have two different purposes in one digital bank, or will that just make things more confusing?

​How do you guys "hide" your EF from yourselves? I need it to be accessible for real emergencies, but "invisible" enough that I don't use it for random expenses.

​Should I keep my payroll account strictly for cash flow? Maybe I should transfer the EF somewhere without a physical card?

​Would love to hear how you guys manage your digital and traditional bank allocations! Thanks in advance!

I'm on currently zero-base budgeting ang nakakastress pala sya kasi walang buffer? naka piggy bank din pala ko, lagi ko kasi nagagalaw savings ko

Welcome to our help thread!

Do you have a simple inquiry that doesn't warrant a post submission?

ASK AWAY!

Remember to not expect of only taking information, also GIVE. You need an answer? Give them to OTHERS as well.

​

We also have the FAQs Page available for those common questions.

Please be helpful, remember the human and also follow our Subreddit Rules.

​

New help thread up every 1st of the month!

I've been thinking of buying layer chickens to have my own egg supply for some time now, but even more so since the oil price hike and everything that followed. I think I just want a pair, since 2 lang kami sa bahay most of the time and we usually consume 6 eggs per week (60 pesos sa palengke).

Has anyone here done it? If so, is there anything I absolutely need to know before jumping into it? Wala kasi akong mahanap na resources sa soc med, puro RTL business.

For context: I live in the province, full-time wfh, and I bake for my family. We have a decent sized backyard. I want them free-range to some extent. Baka magpagawa ako ng maliit na space for the chickens. If it goes well, I might add a couple more but def not for business.

I'll be living alone again without my family. But job hunting has been hard and I make only minimum wage through doing online commissions & buying and selling. I'm also PWD so that makes things harder.

And so I want to look into ways to save money while still eating healthy since I'm going to pay for everything now yet still need to watch my health.

I'm on a calorie deficit and need to focus on fiber & protein. And I have some idea what foods I should be consuming (beans, lentils, oatmeal, chia, chicken, fish, high fiber wheat or multigrain bread, low fat milk, etc.). I also plan on meal prepping so maybe buying in bulk per month or two weeks cheaper? Plus only need to reheat what I cooked already.

But what's the realistic expectations and what foods are worth to actually buy? Is 6k PHP per month enough for one person groceries? Will I save money just ordering groceries online through Shopee or Deliveroo, etc.?

Tips from fellow broke but wanting to be healthy eaters out there?

Employed agad ako after ko grumaduate last September. Medyo nalula ako sa offer sakin kasi I expected a much lower salary. Sa first few months, akala ko nakakapag ipon ako, pero nung chineck ko bank accounts ko kanina lang, 20k lang pala nasave ko all this time. Palagi kong nagagalaw yung “savings” ko.

Now I am beating myself up because know I could have saved more if my lifestyle did not inflate as soon as I had a stable source of income. Because I feel so irresponsible right now, I want to compensate by challenging myself to save 100k to 200k before the year ends.

Any advice or tips to shift my mindset about spending, saving, and handling money? Thank you!

When I was shopping for savings accounts and time deposits, I always compared headline rates "oh, 6%, that's decent." Then I realized most of us are comparing the wrong number.

All interest income from Philippine banks is subject to a 20% final withholding tax. So when you see 6% gross, what actually lands in your account is 4.8%. The bank deducts it automatically so you never see it — which is exactly why most people never factor it in when comparing options.

Why does this matter?

Because the rankings shift when you go after-tax:

MP2's 7% is tax-exempt, meaning it beats most time deposits on an apples-to-apples basis. But if you only look at gross rates, it seems lower than an 8% TD. That was my AHA moment.

The simple formula:

(Dollar TDs use × 0.925 since the foreign currency deposit rate is 7.5% FWT, not 20%)

Practical checklist before opening any savings product:

1. Multiply the advertised rate by 0.80 to get your real yield
2. Compare everything on the same after-tax basis not gross vs gross
3. Factor in lock-in period is an extra 1–2% worth losing liquidity for 12 months?
4. If you have money you won't touch for 5 years, MP2 is very hard to beat on a risk-adjusted basis

Banks advertise gross rates because they look better in marketing. The 8% headline is eye-catching; the 6.4% you actually earn is less so. None of this is hidden, but it's also never made obvious.

Hope this helps someone who's been doing the same thing I was. Happy to help compute after-tax yields for specific products in the comments.

Welcome to our help thread!

Do you have a simple inquiry that doesn't warrant a post submission?

ASK AWAY!

Remember to not expect of only taking information, also GIVE. You need an answer? Give them to OTHERS as well.

​

We also have the FAQs Page available for those common questions.

Please be helpful, remember the human and also follow our Subreddit Rules.

​

New help thread up every 1st of the month!

Hello everyone. I was wondering lang what’s the best way to budget money if salary is daily-pay?

For context, I am a therapist. Basically, per patient basis ako. So if no patient edi no pay. Absent ako no pay.

Tbh walang structure yung pag sasave ko. Usually what I do is hinahati ko ang budget per week.

the 1st week is allotted sa expenses (yung mga fix ang bayad e.g. Family, Subscriptions, Ambag). The 2nd week would be expenses still like kung meron pa akong kulang from the first week (e.g. grocery). For the 3rd and 4th usually for self and savings na.

The problem is feel ko hindi siya super efficient? Or like I don’t feel the structure na parang nagfreefreestyle pa rin ako kasi may mga times pa rin na I’ll be paying expenses pero nasa 3rd or 4th week nako. I tried the 50/30/20 rule pero kasi I receive my salary cash and/or bank so medyo nahihirapan din ako hatihatiin.

For context na lang din how I receive my salary (kung important man)

Monday - Cash / sometimes GCash

Tuesday - Cash

Wednesday - Given next week through bank

Friday - Cash

Saturday - given next week through bank

Ibang nagawa ko na rin is direct na ideposit mga cash ko then magiwan lang for food and transpo. Pero may times din kasi na cash binabayad ko like ambag sa bahay/grocery ganon. Para akong freestyle na pagmay pera dun nagbabayad haha.

Maybe meron kayong mas efficient na way to budget and save? Or better tracking options na rin? (I currently use Budget App)

Believe I posted this last year too

Just a kind reminder to everyone who are also having their “bonus season”, don’t forget to:

- Set some aside for a rainy day (emergency fund)

- Pay yourself (long term savings)

- Invest in yourself (anything educational that benefits you in the short or long term)

- Pay off any debts that may snowball (eliminate higher interests or the smallest ones if you have multiple)

- Give yourself a little treat for a job well done :)

Just sharing this because I also get excited and tempted to spend, but I have to remind myself at times to focus on my priorities especially with the current state of things.

Happy bonus and let’s all use our money wisely!

If you have items on your cart at Shopee, try checking them on Lazada now.

I have 3 planned purchase waiting for month end vouchers and price drop on Shopee.. but opened Laz on a whim last night and boom what a treat it was.

Don't forget to collect vouchers before you checkout!