Not sure where to go...

[lostinMD]

I am a single mom in maryland and in desperate need of help. I lost my job in may and haven't been able to find new work. I'm living on umemployment which helps but is not enough to make ends meet. I'm robbing peter to pay paul and it's backing up on me. I've gone to social services for help and all I can get is $55 in food stamps. I've applied for all the state grants/programs to help with electric and rent with no success. I've gone to local emergency help centers such as churches but was turned away because I was denied help from social services. I'm on the verge of losing everything and having no where to go. I relocated to maryland a couple years ago so I have no family here. Does anyone have any advice or where I could go for emergency help mostly with just the electric...
thanks all....

[jebri]

I'm sorry I don't have any suggestions for how to get help paying the electric bill, but I can give you some suggestions on how to make your bill a little lower so maybe it will be more manageable. If you don't have power strips (surge protectors), they're a good investment. You can plug in TVs, DVD players, pretty much anything that doesn't need to be on all the time, unlike an alarm clock or a refrigerator which do need to be on all the time.
When you go to bed or if you're going to be away for the day, you just switch the button on the strip to off and it shuts all the power off to whatever is plugged into it. You'd be surprised at how far a little bit goes. If you use a microwave, you can unplug that as well when it's not in use, which is most of the time. It uses a lot of energy for that little display on the front and it doesn't need to be plugged in all the time to work (don't plug the microwave into a surge protector though!). If you have fluorescent lights anywhere, those are better to use if you keep them on for longer periods of time. Energy saver bulbs are another good investment. You can put them in lamps and overhead lights, they may look weird, but if it's more important to save money than keep thinks looking pretty, they can help you save. Using lamps instead of overhead lights helps too if you don't need as much light for what you're doing. It may seem like a no-brainer, but if you leave a room and you're not coming right back in a couple minutes, turn the lights out! And last but not least, if you have any natural light, you should use that whenever you can too. Open the curtains and raise the blinds.
Maybe if you make some changes like this, the next time you apply for assistance with energy bills, if you point out you've improved your usage and need less assistance than the last time, maybe they will be more inclined to help.

[Barb]

I know it is hard to make adjustments to being out of work and on public assistance. I've been there a few times myself. One of the best ways to get back on your feet is to move back home. If your parents or a family member is in a position that they can help, put your pride aside and take the help. Remember whatever you do think of your children first. Even though you don't want to move back home you'll find that when you do the children will feel more secure and more of a family.
Children are very astute as to their surroundings and know when their parents a stressed. Sometimes the child will feel that it is their fault that the parents feels stressed and that makes the child uneasy as to what is going on. Besides moving back to your parent's home gives the child the love that they need from a grandparent.

[Gayle]

I agree with Barb. Don't let your child be affected of what is your situation. Make your child your inspiration to survive in your problems now. You can try working on online jobs.