Stress of affording housing

Housing/Shelter/Standard of Living

It has just been confirmed yesterday that I am losing my home. I've been very fortunate to have lived rent free for years by the generosity of my in-laws. The time has come that my situation will change this year. I knew it eventually would, I just hoped to be in a better financial situation when it did. I am not. In fact, with the rising cost of living my situation only gets worse every year even with my annual raises that prove to be miniscule comparatively. I'm so stressed out about what I'm going to do I feel a little bit like I might just die from the worry. My blood pressure is probably high, and I just don't feel good emotionally, psychologically, or physically. I'm also dealing with grieving the loss of two close family members on my side that adding more change into my life right now just feels very overwhelming. I (40F) work my ass off but it has never been enough. Living off one small income and trying to support others is hard. My husband is also a hard worker but has been very unlucky in the job market and battles health issues. He wants so desperately to be employed but in the last few years since his last contract job ended he has not been hired. He fills his time taking care of the falling apart trailer we live in currently and helping everyone else in his family. He housesits and cleans houses for some extra income. It would be great if he could go back to school and get more/new education since his degree is one that employers only like if it's fresh (recently graduated, or no gaps in employment), but I don't know how we could afford that... Anyway, I've been looking at the prices of rent near my work and I'm scared. Even the prices in smaller towns far from my work are high. How do people cope with the stress? I'm hoping I'm just going through the immediate shock of the news and the feeling will pass and I will eventually feel hopeful and strong.

Posted Mar 2, 2026, 4:13 PM UTC

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