'I paid for $1.00 worth of Ramen with a check at a grocery store. The check bounced.': Former broke people share the brokest things they did while living in poverty

We all have different definitions of "broke." I would argue that someone who makes $150,000 a year but has $150,000 in debt is pretty dang broke. I can also admit that someone with that amount of money coming in is probably not living a stereotypically "broke" existence as someone without any debt who's making $35,000 a year. Most of us think of being broke as more of a lifestyle than an income level: This lifestyle involves not eating as much as you should, neglecting to go to the doctor, and having no funds for fun. We all hope that being broke is only a temporary state of being, and when our income increases, we'll be able to forgo the frugal habits of our temporarily broke existence. However, before you can transcend brokenness, you have to do a lot of possibly demoralizing things that don't waste a penny. 

Author image for Emmy Ward Emmy Ward
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