I'm 27. I haven't had a job in 6 months. I'm currently homeless, don't speak to my family anymore, and only have two friends who both live in different cities. I have to wait 3 days until I can go to a job centre with my identity in another city because it's currently on the way, as I lost my passport and birth certificate. My life has fell off a cliff in the past year. I was in great shape one year ago, but now I've gone back to being really skinny and I'm dead broke.
41 comments
Here’s an original copy of /u/Opposite_Praline_746’s post (if available):
I’m 27. I haven’t had a job in 6 months. I’m currently homeless, don’t speak to my family anymore, and only have two friends who both live in different cities. I have to wait 3 days until I can go to a job centre with my identity in another city because it’s currently on the way, as I lost my passport and birth certificate. My life has fell off a cliff in the past year. I was in great shape one year ago, but now I’ve gone back to being really skinny and I’m dead broke.
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Drugs? Alcohol? A little insight into why things went south will help us to answer.
Stop doing drugs would be a good start
Why don’t you speak to your family anymore?
I mean, there are a million good reasons that could explain it, but if it’s just “I’m ashamed of myself”, then please get over it and reach out to them. Ask them for help.
Join the Coast Guard
Sober up and get a job.
Addiction?
You haven’t destoryed life.
they are some Buddhist monks who do not have a fixed home and they live outside. This is a special practice. ( Dhutanga) They are some of the happinest people in this planet.
Many millionaires have been homeless in their lives.
if you can join the library and read some self-help books. The success principles by Jack Canfield is one of the best.
take actions. do not depend on anyone. do not make yourself a victim. you are responsible for your actions and happiness. No one else is.
The extended benzo withdrawal is just making everything seem worse than it actually is. Just do your best to fix one small thing each day, even if you feel like the action was a dead end , it’s still progress if you try your best.
So funny how everyone is assuming its drugs when a lot of homeless people didn’t start doing drugs until after they became homeless. Here in America something like an unexpected illness or car problem can spiral into homelessness in a matter of months.
Join the French foreign legion, do your 5 years, get some discipline make a little money and move past this chapter of your life
You get out of the situation you’re in one day, one actionable step at a time. Can’t speak to homelessness but I’ve been down some bad roads, faced some ultimatums and realized things were about to get ugly fast unless I did everything I could to direct my focus and intentions to small daily improvements. The very first thing I would do is locate work of some kind, no matter how small, no matter if it’s volunteer or not, to implement structure and gain social references. If you’re living a life under the influence, catapult yourself into self-help groups and leap at the opportunity for service. You’d be absolutely amazed how fast your entire life can turn around by just doing those two things alone.
You’re young as fuck. You have your entire life ahead of you. Don’t listen to the things you’ve said. Nothing is ruined. You can replace all the things you’ve lost. It won’t be easy. But if you stay consistent and patient, you will rebuild yourself. Believe in yourself. You have your youth. It’s worth more than money.
Ok. The job centre will buy you right to work documents and will give you any training you want for example CSCS, sia even Teaching assistant. it all depends on what job you want to go into but remember you’re homeless and on UC. you don’t get to be picky on what job you want to do. They will also help with paying rent once you find a place to live.
You can ring places like porchlight
They will give you all the information you need to get yourself a house but im guessing your male and dont have to look after a child so you will be at the very bottom of the list. They will tell you will have to go through the council but they will also sign post you to places you can get warm food and shower.
You’re at the very bottom but think of it this way the only way is upwards. when you’re at the job centre ask to placed on a IPS connect to work scheme it will be better than the RESTART scheme. talk to Nantional Careers service get a fresh CV and talk about training (thats the contract I work in) I have seen many homeless people and its you that has to change your life around. some make it and alot dont its all down to you.
You may not want to hear this but you need to patch shit up with your family
Don’t touch drugs again, ever.
Got to a homeless shelter, ask for a case officer. Explain that you’re sober, at rock bottom but want to improve. You need 2 meals a day and a bed to sleep in at night.
Once you get your identification, never lose it. get a body belt and sleep with it.
Go to a temp agency. Take any work they will offer. Door dash, janitorial, anything. Start saving money while you’re in the shelter.
Flash forward 6 months, you’ll have several hundred (thousand?) in savings. assuming no lingering debt, you’ll be ahead of most people at 28.
Reading your comments, i suspect you have a substance problem that you’re not acknowledging which means your prospects of improvement are slim. “only 2 overdoses” = “1 overdose is more than 99% of the population will ever experience.”
Prove me wrong. No drugs, eat your pride and get setup in a homeless shelter and start from there.
Yeah you’ve got ages to recover 👍 you’ll probably ruin your life a couple more times in the next 50 years. I was in a bad way at 27, at 41 now it’s a distant memory along with a bunch more. You can change your whole life in a year, good and bad. Learn every lesson you can and learn discipline as a hobby.
Go join the Army. That will help you focus your life.
Military before you age out.
well, you need to take it one day at a time. for now you have to survive until you get your papers, then go to job centre and find any job.
even having a smallest goal can help.
I completely turned my life around at the age of 30, like complete 180. My biggest two tips: start by working on something extremely small. For me, it was making sure I brushed my teeth every morning and night, not missing a day no matter what. No excuses…. no bs….. just do it. Then (long story short) worked my way up to my bigger obstacles incrementally (It takes time).
If you have some PTSD, that might be holding you back also. Over time, I slowly relived some of my PTSD experiences and forgave myself and the other player(s) involved. That helped to clear my inner monologue.
I also highly reccomend a book called “The Compound Effect” by Darren Hardy.
When I was in my late twenties my life completely fell apart. Due to a business failure I was declared bankrupt. My assets were seized, I lost my home and my marriage failed soon after. I was homeless for a while and went from a nice middle class life to having less than nothing. I’m now hitting sixty and in the years in between I built a new career, a new marriage, a new life. I’m doing well. Hell, I’m doing really well.
The path I took and the breaks I got don’t really matter in terms of helping you. What will help you is the mindset that got me through. Do not give up on yourself. You have value. Your life has value, and you only get one shot at it. Make it count. Getting knocked down isn’t what defines you, it’s your ability to get back up.
As someone who struggles with depression, depression creeps up on you, ruins relationships, and saps energy and motivation.
Say you get a job and six months later you’re fired again? Will it be suicide attempt #3? Because shit will happen due to no fault of your own, and you don’t need untreated depression making it worse.
Any doctor or nurse practitioner can prescribe Zoloft or Lexipro. You could see a doctor for a cold or sprain and say Hey doc I’ve tried to end myself with barbiturates two times. Do you have suggestions. You don’t have to see a psychiatrist. You don’t need to prove anything. Now you’ll probably have to follow up to make sure you are at the right dosage it’s no big deal. And it is not expensive-in the US with outrageous prices generic antidepressants run me $10 per month without insurance.
It’s one small step you can take today. Please call.
In the UK, the time to get antidepressants prescribed can vary depending on how you access care.
Through a GP (most common)
• 1–14 days to get a GP appointment in many areas (sometimes same-day if urgent).
• If the GP thinks medication is appropriate, they can prescribe antidepressants at the first appointment.
So the total time is often the same day to about two weeks.
Typical NHS cost:
• In England: prescription charge (~£9–£10 per item).
• In Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland: prescriptions are free.
⸻
⚠️ If someone in the UK is in urgent mental distress, they can:
• call NHS 111 and choose the mental-health option
• contact charities like Samaritans (116 123)
Talk therapy will probably be recommended, but that is a much longer process to be effective.
And yes, your case is urgent as you have made 2 suicide attempts.
There is way to much information missing hear, what did you do for your family to kick you out of the house?
Join the military
It’s ok… you’re going to get through this. When you do, years from now make sure you remember what it feels like in this situation so you can relate. I was so poor at one point I even had to steal food. I have never forgotten what that felt like and so I try to treat people with respect regardless of their position in society.
I destroyed my life at 41 and at 51 I got clean. Today I’m 60 and I have a life beyond my wildest dreams. Using drugs was 100% of my problems and there are some things in your story that would lead me to believe they may be your problems as well. Find a Narcotics Anonymous meeting. go to a bunch of meetings. Listen to other people talking about how they’re homeless how they don’t have a job. Raise your hand ask for help. I had nothing and was living on the street after being in jail for a year. Last year, my partner and I bought a house. We do recover you haven’t ruined your life forever. You just need to stop using.
I was dead broke and sleeping on friends couches when I was 26. By the time I was 28 I was making right around $200k. Everyone is on their own path, this is not meant for comparison but for example- the point is your life is certainly NOT over at the age of 27. It’s a marathon not a sprint. Just keep your legs moving because you never know what is 6-12 months away. No way I would have had the success I did if I didn’t know how to struggle first. Use the struggle, when you start to have even the slightest success (or a setback) remember what it felt like during the struggle, then do whatever it takes to not ever feel like that again. If you can learn to harness that you’ll be able to prevent yourself from ever slipping back into it. Best of luck 🤝
I have not been in your situation, and I’m so sorry for all you’ve been through. If you were in my city, I would tell you to head to the local rescue mission. Do whatever they say to do. You’ll get food and housing and some support for starting to make better decisions going forward. Is something like that available where you are? I’m in the United States, California specifically
must’ve been some grade A pussy
You have plenty of time to turn your life around.
I on the other hand, am too old.
Does the music sound good to you? If yes, who gives a shit
I don’t think I was down as far as you are but I definitely wasn’t doing well at 27.
My wife cheated on me and left me with a house I couldn’t afford, got laid off twice, short sold the house during the 2008 financial crisis.
I basically had a choice to either just keep going down the spiral or figure out how to turn it around.
I got a job — not a forever job, just something to pay the bills. Vowed to teach myself for a new career, spent 8 hours every night studying, learning and training for a new career.
Finally landed a good job in my new career a couple years later, started making 6 figures and haven’t looked back.
It’s _never_ too late. Marnie Stern, a musician, didn’t break out til she was in her 40s and eventually became the Seth Meyers Late Show band. Samuel L Jackson didn’t break into acting til his 40s.
You just have to keep at it, keep getting better.
Its not that far to being on your feet dude. Get your shit together and keep pushing. No one has their shit together at your age. And every 27 year old is broke.
Look where people are getting physical job paid per day. There are some places in each city.
15 day account.. post from 8 days ago says homeless for 8 months.. now it’s only 6 months..
🫤
Number one, address any addiction issues that might be hanging over you. I’ve not been through what you’re going through, but I’ve been through some rough stuff. What I learned is to just identify the first small thing I need to do, set the rest aside or it will overwhelm you. Once the first step is addressed, take the next. Pretty soon you’ll look up and you’ve made significant progress. Remember to reflect on that occasionally, remind yourself how far you’ve come.
What education do you have?
Get the head right but work and the money to rent a room and eat some food will go a long way. As soon as you’re able, Hit every construction site you can find until someone offers you a “tryout”. Tryout because that’s how every laborer in construction gets their start. Tryout because you’ll be pushed to work hard and do a few things you dont really want to do. Tryout because the goal for them is to find out if you’re willing to work and keep showing up on time. If you do, then Within a few days you’ll earn your shot and go from there.
I was broke, recovering from substance abuse, and got my shot starting at $12 an hour. 20 years later I’m making 6 figures with a pension.
You can do this.
Always be kind to your parents. You will always need them one day.
You always have time to turn it around, unless your dead.
People turn their life around in the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s, 50’s and even in their 60’s.