The Money Controls Me! | Spendaholics | Only Human 

I was a single mother. Saved, never spent on myself - worked to pay mortgage, bills and spoilt my daughter. Now I realise I don’t know what is best....at least she socialised and went out. I never did anything. It’s depressing both ways, the middle road is best.

Idk why these shows never bring up the fact that popular culture is constantly shoving hyper consumerism down our throats.

Unlike so many of the others on these programmes, Sharon actually seems like a nice person. She isn't living off someone else and abusing their finances, like for eg the blonde girl in Poynton who was living rent free with her parents and making them work long shifts to fund her spending, or the lad in Manchester using his sick mother's retirement savings to buy Vivien Westwood, or the woman in Kent spending 23k of her mum's money. She clearly works hard, is intelligent, has a really good job (£39k would be a decent salary for a legal secretary even now let alone in 2005). Her friends and family comment on the fact that she's generous with her money. She was clearly grieving the departure of her son which must have been bloody difficult given that she appeared to have raised him by herself. And I'm gonna say it...unlike so many of the others on here...it's easier to see how she got into so much debt without realising, cause she had a decent salary and was buying discounted items and second hand. Given that her net pay was 2400 and she probably mixed with people who had similar jobs, she was likely copying their habits and then some. Unlike some of the women who earned 14k etc and were buying designer clothes and make up etc knowing full well that they couldn't afford that lifestyle on their salaries. And unlike them...it wouldn't have taken her long to sort out her finances either and wouldn't have needed to be bailed out. I really hope things worked out for her and that she paid off her debt, repaired her relationship with her son, got the house in St Lucia and is happy now 😊

Sharron, you will ALWAYS be your sons Mom. NO ONE can replace you. Enjoy your life, giving your son a chance to spread his wings. When he comes to visit, just love him and be a supporting Mom who will respect his room to grow his wings. HE WILL always love you. You will have a relationship, don't worry. He also has a need to know his father, this will fill a void in him also.

Really amazed at how cheap things were back then

Have watched 11 episodes and Sharon is by far the most grounded and warm person I’ve seen. I hope sue and her son are reconnecting :)

Mama lost her baba.. its understandable she feels lost herself.

Rent in London went from £290 a month to like £500 a week

The word "void" spoke to me. Several times in my life, a void has been left by a death of someone close, a break up of a long-term relationship, the loss of a job, etc. We have to fill the painful void and sometimes it is not in a positive way. I've gone the route of buying clothes and then I realized that I was spending all of my salary on items that I would throw away in a year or two. I had nothing to show for all of my hard work and salary, so I turned my attention to saving for a home just like she is. It worked.

This was filmed in 2005, and I so hope that she's gotten her St Lucia dream!

So judge-y. She obviously wore all three tops. I’ve done that before… I have three of the same AC/DC T-shirt and I wear them all… When one is dirty I will wear the clean one

I’ve watched a total marathon of these and a lot of people have inspired sympathy but this one is quite clear why things went off the rails and as I’m watching it I found myself actively rooting for her.

If only I had a Benjamin in my life, I think I'd be more than ok....

Lovely lady, best wishes to achieving her goals. God Bless her.

I love the idea of sticking your dreams on the credit cards...as a reminder not to spend money.

Wow.I feel like this show really helped her in so many ways.

im a nail tech not licensed but i do my own acrilycs so its no wonder she spent a huge chunk of her budget on nails and me in my head "okay well thats understandable." hahahaha

290 quid rent in Brixton ohh how life has changed 😔

I feel bad for her son leaving but I think she’s lovely I hope she manages to achiever her dream!

I really hope she saved the money and bought a place in St Lucia

How is the rent so cheap???

£290 per month rent in London?? We pay 4 times that for a broom cupboard 😫

As soon as they said that her son had chosen to stay on the other side of the world, it all made sense to me!!

Interesting, helpful program and she seems to be a sweet lady. I hope she was able to buy her St. Lucia home. Just another thought-it’s fun that Brits say “Brilliant!” when Americans might say “Great!”

Her room and kitchen actually looks organized. She hasn’t reached hoarders level

Those banks really sucked for not consolidating their criminal interest charges.

Maturity goes far in all areas of life. Her rent alone means she could easily afford to save a lot for her future. St. Lucia, wow.... a dream that can come true

Cannot blame the kid , being a young black man in London is not easy. Canada was and is a much better choice. She should understand and support the wise choice his son took. Also parents know they don’t own their children, you give life to your kids to see them grow and live THEIR life, not to keep them tied to yours.

Printing and wasting a room full of paper was a waste of time. I hate how reality tv shows like this are so wasteful with food and other resources.

This lady needs a dave ramsey plan. 75 a month on clothes? Spare me. She'll never get her debt paid if she continues to spend.

This lady pretty much just found ways to spend anyway and got more money for her budget than most do.

32% apr is criminal!

Buying multiples is not always about indecision; I know that tall-size 3/4 length sleeve front-button cotton or linen blouses from Lands End will always fit & look nice on me. That’s why I buy them in multiples about once every two years.

I cried when she let go of the balloon. I understand how hard it was.

£25 for nails!!! That’s $50nzd! And in 2020 girls are doing nails, lashes, botox ....insanity

A lot of kids do that. Ditch the parent who raised them for the absent parent. Really sad. She is genuinely nice and should leave it to someone who cares not her son. He will be sniffing about once she is gone and he thinks inheritance is gonna be available. Kids like that always do. Hope she’s doing well now, she seemed so sad 😢

Hmmm...I don't like the part where the picture of her child attached to the balloon...I won't let it go because I don't want other people to pick up my child's photo!!

39k in 2006 was bloody good money, even by London standards. I was on about 29k teaching around that time, and I felt relatively well off. She's buying tat and lots of it. Hopefully she got her act together.

She has no connection with anything but material goods now that her son has left. She needs to re-evaluate her life and keep her mind on her ultimate goal.

They can't stop her from going to Canada. She just needs to budget for hotel and food for herself. She should be selling those clothes, not giving them to her friend.

I can't stand my exwife, she's abused our daughter for years, but I still don't ban her from my home. The grandmother needs to grow up & stop trying to be that boy's mom.

Bless her heart, when she let go of the balloon it made me cry. I SO hope everything worked out Sharon in the end.🎈❤

NOT a fan of the balloon exercise 😕. V bad for sea life aside from anything else.

I relate so much to this woman, she ashamed and aware of her addiction... Hope she got better ♥️

I had the feeling Benjamin liked her 😉🙃

What I will never understand is how can another woman participate in parent alienation. It’s sick. I feel for her. She a beautiful human being. Shame on the person that did this. Karma will take its place.

She seems like a lovely lady wish her all the best

She is so beautiful

I have been watching a number of episodes and I have been roughly calculating an exchange rate to USD in my head based on the current value. Well it turns out in 2005 the pound was worth 1.82 US dollars. Wow! That makes a lot more sense. These people are in a lot more debt than I realized…

I love this show🥰🥰🥰, I've seen the series before but it is worth seeing again! They come up with some of the most unique ways to refocus the spender!

I just want to give Sharron a big hug!

Gluing down youre dreams on a creditcard. Great idea

Cannot believe all the paper they wasted

Stop judging ppl you have no idea what she went through.

So... she is 27,000 in debt and the show bought her round trip tickets to St. Louisa. Was this a sweeps week?

It's so sad that her son doesn't talk to her. I hope they can reconnect again.

I love that episode, that gave me hope...

Love how they showed her how she spends her funds. If I Have to, I Can survive on less but I do buy too much.

It’s very hard for a mother. But she should be happy that her son has a father and the fathers family involved. He’s half them. My ex husband and his family really had no further connection with my daughter after our divorce. It’s very sad. A son needs his father. Children need both parents and extended families. Canada would have many great opportunities for her son.

Sharon has loads of time on hand. She has enough clothes to go around so no need to purchase more right now

People should stop using their sons as husbands she needs her own man. Your kids are not supposed to save you . I hope gets all the happiness she deserves and a wonderful life.

I ❤ the sticker idea. She’s a success story I’d ❤ to know if she was able to get a house in St. Lucia.

LOL I love that Sharron wore a low-cut dress to the bank meeting, haha, nice try!

One of their best episodes.

This is the sadness episode I have seen, in terms of why she began spending, I do feel for her, she raised her son all this years and at 15 he just decided to live with his father's family in Canada. I wish he truly knew how sad his mum was about that. It would of been better if perhaps they could of contacted the son, so he can understand what he has done to his mum. 15 is not grown enough to make life long decisions and the fact the son probably knew she didn't get along with the dad's family etc. I didn't like that they wanted to give her a £20 budget I have never seen them give someone so low. I didn't like that Benjamin bought her to a cave, again he has never bought anyone somewhere so dark before. Benjamin seems obsessed with the word anger, she wasn' t angry. She was very upset and sad that her son abandoned her after she raised him all these years! I didn't like the balloon exercise either, because the balloon interpretation was like he died. She seemed determined and hope her son returns and she got her finances in order. I wish there was a follow up to this show, I wonder if she achieved her dream of a house in St Lucia.

Oh darling, you're so lovely, bless your heart.

Her salary is massive for back in the 90s, she has absolutely no reason to be in debt.

Watching this I wonder what life was like for her son and why he decided to stay in Canada. In the end I had to cut all contact with my own mother as she simply could not respect any boundaries I put in place. It took a long time for me to understand that just because she saw her intentions as good, it didn't negate the harm her actions had on me. Which meant I had allowed it to continue as an adult out of guilt and just absorbed the damage to myself. In the end, it doesn't matter how 'nice' someone may be or how validated they may feel in their own actions. The damage they do is very real. Every time she talks about her son his name is closely followed by the word 'control' and she openly states she's upset because she's lost that control. The language she uses, the idea of it being something only she can understand. It's all very familiar to me. As nice as everyone seems to think she is. I'll wager being the focus of that obsession and control was pretty damaging. Hence why the son has gone and stayed where he knows she can't get to him. He's taken an overt and deliberate action to escape her and one probably borne out of sheer necessity. The program makes it sound like the son was selfish in his actions which I think is totally wrong.

Idk, it would be more acceptable to splurge on household needs and utilities, like buy laundry detergent in all size and scent variants. Lol

Not being able to see your child is very, very painful. Also the fact that she didn't have a say in it. You need therapy to help you proces. What Benjamin has started with. That being said, she could've bought herself a new tooth when she spent all her money on clothing. I don't get that, cause that's what I'd do first. Let me tell you what you can do to get anger out. See the person you're angry with in front of you sitting on a chair. Express your anger by talking, crying, screaming. It really works.

Those loan interests are crazy!!!!!!!!!

Your child is their own person. You don't own them and they don't even owe you anything.

The flip side of this show is visiting the sweatshops where these clothes are made. The workers sleep on the floor under their sewing machines.

£290 a month for a flat in Brixton ?!?! Oh my, how things have changed 😭

I totally relate to the emotional abuse inflicted by Sharon's relations. She's a lovely woman who deserves happiness. I hope her St Lucia dream came true.

Im just the opposite, you literally have to drag me to buy something new and then later I will prob regret it 😀🤦‍♀️

Ben is brilliant. Very talented psychologist.

Not going to lie, but the clothes doesn't even look that good. I can get things cheaper AND better.

So moving. Good luck Sharon

a cleaner??? she has a cleaner ... that is madness ... she needs to stay home and read a book ...

Oh, they found the fur coat! Very nice coat really. I hope she got this spending under control. She is such a sweetheart.

I think Sharon will make it. She's generally capable and organised. If she has a goal, she can do it.

Banks never want to help. I have crippling debt. Been using credit to buy groceries. After paying bills that's the only way I can get food. I don't have tons of clothes or anything. Just bad with managing money. Inflation hasn't helped

Bless her heart 💔

Consider it this way. If you have a roof over your head, a warm bed to sleep in, food in your fridge and cupboards, gas and electirc on you have more then 80% of the worlds population. People need to start living with a sense of humility and be thankful for what they have. Life is not about clothes, gadgets, clubbing and fancy restaurants. It is about love, family, caring for others and leaving the world a better place for the next generation. Life is short and material possessions are useless after we are gone. The majority of humanity who have lived and died before us have been completely forgotten, those who are remembered are those who left their mark on this world.

Not really a great idea going on a night out and letting friends pay for drinks so you can save money! If everyone done that we'd all have pockets full of money!!!

This one really hit my heart. I hope her son came back and her dreams came true.

I can't help but feel disgusted at her son's conduct, she raises him alone and loves him all his life and he repays her by abandoning her, I'm not saying that he can't lead a life of his own but the way he did it was so ungrateful and unfeeling. I have this horrible feeling that although I want them to reconnect, that if he ever runs out of money or she manages to buy a place abroad, then he'll suddenly show up. During that balloon scene you could see she was grieving as if she had suffered his death it was heartbroken, she deserves better as she seems like a lovely warm and beautiful woman.

I buy clothes if they fit I buy them in different colors but I wear them

Watching this in 2023 and looking at the 290 pounds rent ☹️ while I pay 1700 pounds for a single room

She needs to get real and figure out what she really did to her son for him to move to another country and not come back.

Shes gorgeous

While I am sorry to hear that her son left her to stay with his fathers family -I do wonder how she could have afforded to keep him with her

Getting my nails done has never happened waste of money as far as I'm concerned. She got clothes with vouchers a friend owed her 20 she went way over budget the first week

I've been on welfare and disability for YEARS. You better believe that I keep track of where the money is going. I am getting a new , very needed computer because my family is paying for it. I could never afford it on my disability. They also buy my clothes, my specialty shoes. My disability payments cover rent, bills and groceries. Nails? I don't get my nails done.

No one has ever mentioned insecurity as the motivation to acquire stuff. I never owned much until I worked full time and even then, it was during the recession. So I never know if I will be able to own anything in the future.

I can't believe the way Sharon keeps laughing. Her situation is not funny; it's ridiculous.

I sincerely hope this program was made a good number of years ago... if so, I can "sort of" forgive Benjamin for releasing balloons... So, Benjamin, I see the positive effect of the exercise but - seriously - do find some less lethal manner for symbolically releasing grief.. Really...

I will watch all of these.

This one really broke my heart. I hope she managed to sort it out