Sarah Outtridge, a 31-year-old midwife from Hackney, East London, has cleared £12,000 of her £34,856.67 debt in just one month by adopting the snowball method. Her total debt, accumulated since she turned 18, included a £7,500 car on finance, an £8,000 breast augmentation, and £4,500 worth of courses in property and aesthetics.
Debt Accumulated Through Impulse Spending
Sarah has been in debt since she was 18, purchasing expensive items "on impulse." In 2020, she bought a car on finance for £7,500, and later spent £8,000 on a breast augmentation. She also used Klarna, a buy now, pay later service, to fund new wardrobe additions, spending up to £1,000 in a single month on clothes.
In July 2026, Sarah totalled up her debt and was shocked to find it exceeded £30,000. She said: "I thought it was around £20,000 thinking off the top of my head. I didn't sit down and calculate it. When I did finally do that, with all the interest added it was over £30,000. I thought 'this is crazy' and way more than I thought and something has got to change."
Snowball Method Strategy
To clear her debts, Sarah is using the snowball method, a strategy where you tackle your smallest debts first, then redirect those payments towards larger debts, creating momentum until everything is settled. She has already eliminated her £3,250 Monzo credit card balance and her £1,000 Klarna balance, and has decided to shut down her Klarna account permanently.
Sarah cancelled a £7,000 tummy tuck scheduled for September 2026 to free up funds for debt repayment. She said: "I had a tummy tuck booked in Turkey in September this year and I have cancelled that. I paid off my Monzo credit card by cancelling that procedure."
Lifestyle Changes and Extra Shifts
Sarah is working an additional two 12-and-a-half-hour shifts weekly, earning roughly £4,000 monthly, and putting 50 per cent of her wages towards debt repayment. She has been clearing chunks of between £500 and £1,000 per week thanks to her overtime.
She has also made significant cuts to her spending: "I have cleared out the cupboards of food and have only been getting things it makes sense to buy. I'm doing no buys as well so I'm not buying new clothes. I'm walking everywhere – I have completely cut public transport and uber." Meal prepping has helped reduce expenditure, and she has cancelled her £40 per month gym membership. She also switched energy providers from Fuse Energy to Good Energy via U-Switch, a move she estimates will save her £37 each year.
Future Goals and Progress
Sarah has set herself the target of becoming debt-free by the end of 2027, and then aims to build an emergency fund covering three months' expenses by March 2028. Her ultimate ambition is to save £50,000 towards purchasing a property, as she's currently living in supported housing, by December 2029.
Sarah's debt breakdown before included: Monzo credit card (which paid for aesthetics appointments, shopping and clothes) at £3,250 plus £247.84 interest; Monzo loan (for composite bonding) at £6,000 over five years plus £3,106.25 interest; Lendable loan (for breast augmentation) at £7,500 plus £1,500.42 interest; and Tesco loan (for tummy tuck) at £10,000 over five years plus £3,500 interest. Total debt was £35,104.51. Now, she has cleared her Monzo credit card, with £2,585.85 left on the Monzo loan, £7,032.09 on the Lendable loan, and £13,128.15 on the Tesco loan, leaving a total of £22,746 to pay.
Sarah started documenting her journey on TikTok last month and has received "loads" of comments and encouraging messages. She said: "People are saying I'm brave for putting it out there. Even people at work have been saying 'Sarah because of you I've cleared off my credit card'." She added: "It's a big weight lifted off my shoulders. I feel so motivated every time I pay a bit more towards my loans. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I felt weighed down before and drained like I was living in survival mode. At the moment I'm building a future for myself and it's freeing. I'm getting my life back."
