How hard it is to be the bread winner?

I imagine it's pretty difficult. I'm lucky because my parents still help me out a bit, but I've just calculated that if I earn $100.00 more dollars I can be self-sufficient which is a goal. My mother is always complaining that it's hard to be the breadwinner in the house because she is. My stepfather has a job but it doesn't pay as much as hers. This makes sense because she's a neonatal intensive care unit nurse. All he does is count supplies for the government. I actually am looking forward to being a self-sufficient person. I don't know how long it is going to take me to earn the $100.00 extra. I hope it's within the year. Then, I'll pay all my own bills by November 2010. Then, I can probably come back and answer this question in a much more clear manner.

I agree with you on that. I guess I have already mentioned in my previous blog comments that early this year, my parents lost their jobs, my brother's contract ended, and my aunt -who lives with my family together with her two children- lost her job, too. So I became our family's breadwinner. It was a little overwhelming at first, and I guess it still is, but it couldn't be helped. Of course, I just can't and won't turn my back on them. They depend on me in so many ways, yet they also look for ways for them to make both ends meet. I don't live with them, and don't have a family of my own, but my fiancee and I have plans to get married next year since we've been dating for 5 years now. They're expecting a lot from me, being the eldest, being the only one who graduated from college and being the only one who has a regular job. Sometimes, the pressure of it all gets through to me, but my love for them is greater than any pressure I feel, so I try to do everything for them - never mind the hardships. What makes them happy makes me happy, too.

I think it depends on how big your family is and how much are you earning. If you got a big family and only earns an amount just sufficient for the food and lodging then it will be very hard. But if you got a small family and your earning a descent amount then it won't be so hard and everyone will be happy. Good day to you. shadow41

Well I can say that it's really hard to be a bread winner. Although I'm not the bread winner in my family but I know how hard it is. We're a big family and I can say that we had a lot of expenses but our budget is not enough to sustain it. The good thing is God is there to help us.. He's a great provider. My older brother is the bread winner in our family and since he receive more salary than us. Sometimes I pity my brother He can't even buy new clothes for himself. He always put our family first. I really admire him..