[nickd2001]

Hi Wincy, it seems to me not at all pathetic, to struggle with willpower to break bad habits, when you've got a disabled child! Seems to me that looking after your child would take lots of willpower and cause stress and lack of freedom, and that you should forgive yourself for using "retail therapy" as a coping strategy. ;) Perhaps the answer lies partly in finding a support group with other "special needs parents", as lets face it most of the population don't understand what its like to have a disabled child until it happens to them. Beyond that, one way not to waste money is to think of it in terms of hours you give your employer, spent money is spent life hours, therefore you're really shooting yourself in the foot, but obviously you know that.. frugality, hunting down deals can be fun and kind of a sport in itself (in moderation of course!) ,also being frugal reduces one's footprint on the earth and amount of waste one creates which can help others, so can be a motivator. If really you have no self-control over this (which is 100% understandable when dealing with other challenges) then how about some tricks like automatically pay money into a higher interest savings bond that has penalties if withdrawn early, or pay into an account that someone else has control of like a trusted friend or family member has to countersign or something, just surrender control to someone else for a temporary period if you really can't trust yourself. Can your partner/spouse help? I guess maybe not if you're asking here. Anyway I think nothing to be ashamed of, because loving and caring for a disabled person is enough to deal with, and having cr*ppy finances as result, well, like can be like that.