Money Diary: A 30-Year-Old Yoga Teacher In Bristol On 22k

This week: "I’m a 30-year-old yoga teacher/freelancer/barista/still-trying-to-figure-it-all-outer, living in Bristol. I’m a retired emo turned wholesome yogi with tattoos and overstretched earlobes who also loves kale and early nights.

I moved here two and a half months ago in a bid to settle down a little bit, as I’ve been living abroad for the last two years since completing my 200-hour yoga teacher training in Bali at the start of 2018. After larking around Asia for four months living a smug-tanned-yogi-on-Instagram dream, I then went to live in Spain, teaching yoga and living in a surf camp, then on to the French Alps to do another ski season. It’s Peter Pan land in ski towns: snowboarding and partying whenever you want and cleaning chalets for spending money, with no grown-ups telling you what to do. I stayed there for 10 months. I then went to Morocco to have one last stint of teaching yoga abroad, as teaching at surf camps is usually a fun, easy (albeit badly paid) job.

Before heading off I already knew I was tired of this lifestyle and after a month and a half I left and came back to the UK, burnt out, poor and unwell. Feeling like I had failed. I was teaching yoga all day, every day under the ruling of the 'yoga boss' who was a bully. I started suffering from severe dehydration from the sickness and having crippling panic attacks; the whole experience was very un-yoga.

I’m now living in a lovely peaceful house in the suburbs of Bristol and looking forward to having a regular job, getting myself out of debt, feeling healthy and strong again, living closer to my family and being part of the local yoga community. And no more dating 26-year-old snowboarders, they are chaos and trouble.

I’ve been working in a coffee shop since moving here to get some money for settling in and paying rent but they recently decided they didn't want me unless I committed to full time, and gave me a week's notice. I'm very lucky I had a month of freelance work booked in prior to this weird quitting/firing. I also teach yoga twice a week at my local, lovely studio and cover classes as and when needed."
 
Industry: Wellness, publishing and until last week, because I guess I got fired, hospitality. 
Age: 30
Location: Bristol
Salary: Around 20k before tax based on this month's earnings. 
Paycheque amount: This month it’s £1,171 from the coffee shop, £528 from freelancing and £139 for teaching yoga. Last month was way less, next month will be significantly more, as I’m about to start a new job at the end of this week! 
Number of housemates: Three; two are a couple and also my landlords.
 
Monthly Expenses
 
Housing costs: £575 all in.
Loan payments: I owe my dad £3,000. This is mostly from my overdraft, which I was stuck in for years because I was renting in London and not earning much, and he lent me the money last year to get out of it and close the account to avoid paying the fees every month. The rest is money I would’ve spent with a credit card over the past two years during my travels but, again, he lent me the money as he didn’t want me to get further into debt or owe banks and credit card companies. I’m endlessly, endlessly grateful for this and will of course pay him back as soon as I can afford to. I also have a student loan, which I ignore, but I'm sure will catch up with me now I’m a UK resident again.
Utilities: Included in rent. But we each put a tenner in a jar every month for things like loo roll, basic cooking supplies and cleaning products.
Transportation: £5 a day for the bus if I need to go into the city, about £60 a month on petrol.
Phone bill: £15
Savings? The last of my savings were spent on escaping Morocco and the deposit and first month's rent on my house.  
Other: Adobe Creative Suite £10 a month, Spotify £9.99, and I use my sister's Netflix – thanks sis!