Welcome to my Winter of Discontent. You can call me Jo – a recent State Pensioner. After 3 years of chaos, I was hoping for better times. That was not to be. Putin’s unwanted war triggered Austerity but also something deeper.

 

My compulsion is to tell my Austerity story - not for pity – but as a mirror to wider hardship.  I know I am not alone. The News last night covered the Rowntree Foundation Report. It talked about how recent deepening poverty is causing a downward spiral in UK mental health. They called it the money ‘Insecurity Vortex’.

 

I want to draw you in and evoke a visceral response to my own downward spiral. See how a lack of warmth and food on a plate are so debilitating. See how initial thrift can gradually mutate into far deeper mental issues.