Earlier this year inflation increased to 11.1%. The rate of inflation is at the highest it has been for 41 years. This is according to the House of Commons Library Government website.
This rise in inflation would be bad enough, however, wages and benefits are not increasing fast enough to meet the rate of inflation. Increased taxes have also made this disparity worse. All of these things are having an effect that is currently called the Cost Of Living Crisis.
The Cost Of Living Crisis is affecting everyone. People are struggling to heat their homes. It is also becoming difficult for some people to afford fuel for their cars. People are also struggling to buy food. While these examples are bad enough, they can often be compounded for people who have Additional Needs (disabilities).
I have Cerebral Palsy, and it is leading to me having heating difficulties as a direct result of the Cost Of Living Crisis. The biggest impact that the Cost Of Living Crisis has had on me has been on energy bills.
My Cerebral Palsy means that if my joints get cold, my chronic pain gets worse. It’s not always possible for me to just put more layers on, due to other nuances of my Cerebral Palsy. As a result, I often find myself having to put the heating on more than the average person.
The Cost Of Living Crisis means that I have to be more selective when I put the heating on. The cost was manageable before, but that was before energy bills went up and consumables started to cost more, more regularly.
Someone I spoke to locally said that, “The Cost of Living Crisis resulted in me having to change my shopping habits due to the result of the rising prices of food, fuel & energy, I made less trips to the supermarket and tried to stretch out the food I bought so I would spend less every month on food…”
Their explanation of how they have had to change their shopping habits and spend less money on food, highlights how the Cost of Living Crisis could make the situation exponentially worse for those who are already experiencing Food Poverty .
The Food Standards Agency defines Food Poverty as “… the inability to acquire or consume an adequate or sufficient quantity of food in socially acceptable ways…”. Food Poverty can also take the form of a person not knowing where they will be able to get their next meal from.
If people are having to save money on food, this may lead them to cut corners and buy more fast-food type items. If people do, they may not be buying food that is actually nutritious and healthy. Over time, this could have an effect on the person’s physical and mental health, according to the National Health Service.
Someone else I spoke to shared that, “The price of fuel resulted in me taking less trips out in the car and it meant that I had to be selective about when I went out and where I went, overall it meant I was less able to make journeys.”
Having to be more selective around travel could cause problems with work obligations. However, it could also compound the social isolation that many people, particularly those who have Additional Needs, are already experiencing.
Some people have the technology and/or digital literacy to make and maintain friendships without meeting in person. However, some people do not.
For those who do not have the technology and/or digital literacy to make and maintain friendships from a distance, meeting in person will be the only way they can stay connected with their friends and social supportive networks.
If people can not meet in person as often as they normally would because of increasing fuel prices, then they will be more cut off and isolated.
For a lot of people, maintaining friendships is a crucial aspect of good mental health. This can be even more important for people who have Additional Needs, their friends may be a welcome distraction from their conditions, or give them a sense of kinship and solidarity that builds resilience and can allow for sharing of coping mechanisms.
Keeping this in mind, it is clear that the Cost Of Living Crisis is unequivocally having a negative effect on people’s mental health. For the same reasons and in addition to the complexities mentioned here, the negative effects on mental health can be compounded for people who have Additional Needs.
All of the negative effects of the Cost Of Living Crisis that I have mentioned so far are horrible. However the most terrifying one that I have heard is that someone I spoke to is having to reconsider their care package.
The person in question explained that although payment for their care package was means tested, that calculation was done before the beginning of the Cost Of Living Crisis.
With the rate of inflation as it is now 11.1%, everyday items now cost more. As wages and benefits have not increased to an amount that counters that, this person is concerned that there will come a day when they do not have the money to afford to pay their contribution towards their current care package. Information about this from the Local Authority has been unclear. They are also worried about keeping their home warm for their carers, as it is at the end of the day their place of work.
It is possible that they may not need to decrease that care package. However, the mere fact that they are having to consider it is horrifying and heartbreaking. No one should ever have to think about compromising on what they need to live the basic life comfortably, because they do not have enough money.
The Cost Of Living Crisis is affecting everyone. However, we cannot forget that people who have Additional Needs are more at risk of having their physical and mental health compromised, and their basic level of living is being put at risk.
