‘My bills alone are $3000 a month’: Single mom says she has to get her daughter’s braces removed because she missed a payment
A single mom went on a rant about the rising cost of living in the United States, which has seen a massive jump since 2021.
TikToker Tiffany Barker (@tfnymomof2) vented about her current financial problems, decrying the state of the nation's economic system while yearning for a time when the cost of day-to-day living wasn't so prohibitively high.
Inflation hit a 40-year-high in June of 2022 and is projected to keep increasing as we head into 2024. The rising costs of goods, along with skyrocketing rent and property values have made purchasing a home today harder than it was during the Great Depression, which has put numerous Americans in a state of financial crisis. In fact, 55%-63% of Americans are said to be living paycheck to paycheck, meaning that one missed pay period could be disastrous for them and their families.
@tfnymomof2 Sorry had to vent. This is just bullshit
♬ original sound - TFNYMOMOF2
This is the situation Tiffany found herself in after she missed a payment on her child's braces. The TikToker recorded a video from the inside of her car, and as of publication, the clip has accrued over 3.3 million views on the popular social media platform.
She begins by laying out the details of her situation. "My bills alone are $3,000 a month. I'm a single mom who receives f*cking like $300 a month in child support for two kids."
Tiffany says that she goes to work every day and if she's lucky she can take one, maybe two days off per week. She adds, "I'm sick of it. I'm so sick of this and I f*cking forgot to pay my daughter's braces and now I have to bring her in for them to remove them because I can't afford to pay it all off at once."
The single mom goes on to criticize the general state of the US economy, noting how expensive her basic needs are.
"I am so sick of this country. I'm so sick of how expensive everything f*cking is. Something needs to happen. Where I live, rent is insane. A 2 bedroom is f*cking 2 grand. I can't go to the grocery store and get a week's worth of f*cking groceries without spending $300, $400. Gas alone is almost $4 a gallon. I have to drive all over my town for my job because I clean houses."
"Something needs to be done ... Nobody can f*cking survive like this," she says. "Especially if you're alone, you're single. You can't. Like do I have to get a f*cking roommate and rent out my son's room and and move him in my room? Like this country it sucks. It sucks. I'm sick of it and I'm tired. God and I'm pissed."
Viewers resonated with the single mom's frustrations and shared their thoughts in the comment section.
One touched on how inflation has nullified salary increases, stating, "I keep saying this is the most money I've ever made in my life, but it's also the most broke I've ever been in my life."
Another user echoed the same sentiment, writing, "I was doing better at 15/hr 4 years ago then at 34/hr now."
One person agreed with Tiffany's desire to make a life outside of the US, saying, "I wanna move out of this country. I own my home and it’s crazy. Everything is expensive. I go to Walmart and buy 4 things. It’s $100."
Someone else commented that simply existing is expensive these days: "You walk out the door and it costs you $100. It's insane."
People also complained about the multiple jobs that they have to work in order to make ends meet. One person shared, "I took PTO for a few days just so I could work another job on my PTO."
Another claimed that they even chose not to have kids because of the ailing economy. "Agree, being alive is expensive. People ask my wife and I why we don't have kids. We are struggling to support ourselves"
The Daily Dot has reached out to Tiffany via TikTok comment for further information.
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