how are you surviving financially

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-05-2006
how are you surviving financially
7
Mon, 06-19-2006 - 4:30pm

I am 41 years old and the mom of 3 kids, married 20 years. I plan on filing this November for divorce. We have done the counseling thing etc but i have totally fallen out of love with my husband for many reasons.
Right now I am working a day job from 7 a.m. till 2 p.m. 5 days a week as a mgr at a foodservice restaurant and then 3 nights a week as a waitress in order to save up tip money to help us make it for when I serve him. I told him March of 2005 I wanted a divorce and he vowed to quit his high paying job and work at Blockbuster for 8$ an hour so he doesn't have to pay much child support etc. So I ended up staying this long to secure myself financially in preparation for this.

My question is, when each of you left, what was your financial position and what have you done for jobs to keep an income coming in.

Any help, insight or support is appreciated.

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-05-2004
Mon, 06-19-2006 - 5:12pm

Well, I have to admit that I'm doing BETTER w/o my STBX! He was BAD with money and I was constantly covering his rear w/ dough. Now that I don't have to do that, I have about $500 more a month!

Granted, my issue is the condo we shared. It worked great when I paid the mortgage and he paid the other bills. I really can't afford to do ANYTHING and keep this place, so I will probably be foreclosing though I have a great job.

You might want to look into some ROP classes and see if you can get a marketable certification or skill so that you can increase your earning potential. I'm a CPC (certified Professional Coder) and they start at around $17/hour in California. There are also coding jobs EVERYWHERE, so I'm never out of work. In fact, you could work it out to work from home if you're good enough w/ marketing! :)

- JD

- J. Darling

Singehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/JDarling/Headshots/Picture001.jpgr, Songwriter, Author for Celebr

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-09-2006
Mon, 06-19-2006 - 8:30pm
I am actually doing better myself. My seperated husband was awful with money! I am 39 year old with 3 children. I have a very strict budget, like I make my lunch every day we only eat out once every 2 weeks , and it is pizza. But by the time all bills are paid I have about $100.00 left over. Before we had nothing left over and he made triple what I made.
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-12-2005
Mon, 06-19-2006 - 8:47pm
What is a coder?
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-05-2004
Mon, 06-19-2006 - 9:42pm

Basically, when you go into the doctor's office (in the states), the doctor writes up his note. That's where I come in. I read the note and "code" it based codes listed in the CPT and ICD-9 books put out by the AMA (American Medical Association). The codes all have different definitions and so I pick the ones that best reflect the work the MD did on you. Then we send the claim off to insurance companies so the MD can get paid. The point of a coder is to maximize revenue, WHILE staying in compliance with OIG (office of inspector general) and CMS (aka Medicare) guidelines to avoid fraud and other law suits.

I am certified through that AAPC. I think their website is www.AAPC.com. There is another group that does the certifications as well and I think their site is www.AHIMA.com.

You have a choice between hospital (aka inpatient) coding and professional (aka outpatient, office) coding. AHIMA is more directed towards hospitals. AAPC is more directed toward outpatient coding.

It's all actually pretty simple. Know basic anatomy, know how to use the books, and be able to read and Bam! As long as you pass the test, you're a coder! :)
- JD

- J. Darling

Singehttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v244/JDarling/Headshots/Picture001.jpgr, Songwriter, Author for Celebr

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-13-2003
Tue, 06-20-2006 - 12:56am
If you have the time (about 3 years) I would recommend nursing. I'm an ER nurse and find I can get a job anywhere. It's very flexible so I only work when my kids are with their dad. You can do anything from hospitals, clinics, schools etc. I worked at my kids private school when they were little and it was great. Right now I'm working one 12-hour shift per week and making about $1600/month (in California). If you can suck it up for 3 years and get the degree, the opportunities are endless. They project the nursing shortage to last for 30 more years. HTH

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-09-2006
Tue, 06-20-2006 - 5:48am
I have been a nurse for 18 years in ICU/ cardiac nursing. However in the state I live in things are not that flexiable, so I left nursing to be able to see my kids more. Kinda wish I lived in Ca. We have a shortage of nurses here, but the hosp. have brough in foriegn nurses to help. Are you employeed by one employor or do you do work for mult. companies? I would love to know more, b/c going back to nursing sure would help the pocketbook more and I am going to lose health insurance benefits when the divorce is final. I am a RN with my BSN
iVillage Member
Registered: 05-13-2003
Tue, 06-20-2006 - 1:12pm
You're way ahead of me. I stopped at my ADN because I needed to get into the workforce asap. I hope to go back and get my BSN once my youngest is in school. I work for one hospital in the ER. I work one or sometimes 2 shifts per week. They're 12 hour shifts, but I prefer that. Once I'm at work I just want to work as many hours as I can and then not have to go back for a week. :) A lot of hospitals are offering refresher courses to nurses that have been out the clinical setting for awhile. I make $37.50/hour per diem. I also need to get benefits now so I'm applying at Kaiser. If you have Kaiser in your state it's an awesome place to work. The benefits are outstanding and they're FREE. You can insure your whole family medical/dental/vision with NO cost to you. You only have to work 20 hours/week to qualify for the free benefits. Most hospitals have cut their retirement programs but Kaiser has not. They're offering $3000-$5000 sign on bonus for a lot of positions right now so it's a good time to check them out. I hope to be on board with them before my divorce is final. HTH.
Theresa