People Who Grew Up Never Having Enough Money Usually Experienced These 11 Very Specific Things
Benevolente82 | Shutterstock Children who grow up in poor communities or impoverished homes tend to develop a “scarcity mindset” that informs their emotional well-being and decision-making skills, even into adulthood. The feelings and experiences associated with their lack of money, food, or financial stability are deeply ingrained, even for those who have grown out of poverty into more comfortable situations.
Unfortunately, even if a person has escaped poverty, the scarcity mindset can follow them into adulthood. It informs and affects their money situation, spending habits, and social interactions and connections with others. Living through poverty is profound and incredibly influential, which is exactly why people who grew up never having enough money usually experienced these very specific things.
People who grew up never having enough money usually experienced these 11 very specific things
1. Exclusively wearing ‘hand-me-down’ clothes as a child
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According to a study from the Urban Institute on material hardship, nearly 40% of families struggled to afford necessities in 2017 — a problem that’s only grown exacerbated by inflation and financial insecurity today. Unable to afford the electric bill and groceries in the same month, purchasing new clothes was utterly out of the question for most families.
Replacing older, more worn-out clothing is a luxury, and most families who are short on money or living paycheck to paycheck either recycled hand-me-down clothing from older siblings to younger ones or utilized thrift stores and clothing drives to dress their children.
For people who grew up never having enough money, the anticipation of inheriting an older sister’s favorite jacket or the twinge of jealousy they fought seeing their friend’s new winter jackets are all shared experiences. And while hand-me-downs are a convenient solution for people not wanting to spend on new clothing, for those unable to afford basic necessities, it wasn't an option.
2. Feeling embarrassed walking while everyone else drives
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Transportation strategies and the cost of simply “getting around” for impoverished families are huge stressors, especially in today’s world, where car-centric infrastructure has taken over most cities. As a demographic that objectively needs access to transportation more than others, impoverished families in rural areas and small towns are forced to resort to walking to work and school.
An investigative study from Safe Routes revealed that poor communities and low-income neighborhoods are even less likely to have safe sidewalks and pedestrian-friendly infrastructure than wealthier cities. And, unfortunately, people who grew up never having enough money usually experienced these very specific things.
When everyone else is driving, the inherent shame and embarrassment of trying to walk somewhere — that likely doesn’t have a sidewalk, paved road, or safe intersections — sticks out sorely for many adults.
3. Never inviting friends to hang out at your home
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Similar to the themes of a study published in Sociology, there’s a complex web of emotions, feelings, and situations people in poverty experience regarding shame. Typically manifested from societal standards and financial expectations, feeling ashamed while growing up in a low-income household tends to engrain an inherent sense of embarrassment in many children’s psyches.
As children experiencing poverty at home, many prefer to hang out and spend the night at their friends' homes rather than their own, embarrassed by having too much clutter, as an Anthropological Quarterly study on ethical consumption investigates through the connection of hoarding tendencies and the scarcity mindset or having too little to share.
As an adult, this kind of shameful behavior might still flood your life when you have guests over or meet a new friend, even if you’ve achieved financial stability. Growing up, your space at home was not a reflection of your connections in public, and that kind of inherent mindset is difficult to unlearn quickly.
4. Overeating or struggling with food intake as an adult
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According to a research report from Appetite investigating the link between health, eating habits, and childhood poverty, growing up in a low-income household was associated with an increased risk of obesity in adulthood. The scarcity mindset cultivated as a child, specifically with food in many cases, significantly alters the eating habits of adults once they have access to food.
A first-generation college student who grew up in poverty might be more likely to utilize a free dining hall than her peers, informed by the intensity of their subconscious ideas about food deprivation. This might lead to unhealthy eating habits founded on this scarcity mindset.
Considering that almost 14% of American homes were food insecure in 2023, and that more than 50 million people turned to food banks to relieve hunger that same year, it's no surprise that people who grew up without much money would be stuck in this mindset. Because while food insecurity is one of the more unfortunate experiences of being low-income, it’s also one that’s deeply ingrained in the behavior of adults today — from avoiding food shortages to hoarding accessible food to overeating.
5. Knowing the price of groceries off the top of your head
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Many of the experiences of people who grew up poor are inherently intertwined with food insecurity and hunger, which are subsequently intertwined with the health, well-being, and longevity of communities across the country. A lot of adults who grew up in poverty have noticed they’re far more aware of grocery and food prices than their friends and peers — from the cost of milk to eggs and their average weekly necessities, they always know how much to budget.
A symptom of always being overly aware of their household spending as a kid or even scrambling for the specific change of an item at a grocery store, these memories stay with you for longer than a few months or years. For most of the past five years or so, food prices have been on the rise, which is a grim reality for people already struggling to make ends meet.
6. Always opting for homemade solutions instead of actual repairs
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People who grew up never having enough money usually experienced having to repair broken items themselves without hiring professionals to do it for them. And now, as adults, many still fall into their old impoverished households' economic and money-saving habits — it’s simply what they know.
When a window breaks in their house, the dishwasher gets blocked, or a tile comes up in the kitchen, they’re not thinking about who they can call to fix it — they’re figuring out how to fix it themselves. Like the other shared experiences, it returns to a scarcity mindset — you’re stuck in “survival mode,” even when your life is no longer void of stability, food, money, or comfort.
7. Saving condiment packets, cutlery, and free samples
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For people who grew up poor or in a grandparent’s home, they likely came across the “sauce” drawer filled with condiments, salt and pepper packets, take-out cutlery, and a rainbow of colored napkins. It's a common experience among those in low-income homes who have to pinch every penny they can by stocking up on "free" items to take off some of the financial burden.
While it’s primarily a lighthearted action that lingers in people’s eating habits into adulthood and through generations, it’s also intertwined with psychological spending justifications for people experiencing poverty. Micro-tendencies like saving sauce packets or taking napkins at fast-food restaurants help combat the internal shame sparked by harmful societal ideas about “joyful” spending in poor households.
People quickly shame impoverished families who “wastefully spend” money on fast food, treats, a TV, or a night out, as if they’re any less entitled to joy than someone with a comfortable bank account. To combat the societal shame and internal turmoil of spending, this small act of defiance bonded families and became a reflexive norm.
8. Feeling guilty when someone pays for your meal or gifts you money
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Experiences from impoverished households, like the ones highlighted in the book “Poverty and Shame: Global Experiences,” are often denoted by phrases riddled with anxiety, shame, and guilt. From “going around in circles” to “struggling to stay afloat” and even living in a “nightmare,” the traumas of growing up poor aren’t easy to leave behind, address, or heal from.
For many children who were taught to constantly worry about money or lived in an atmosphere where “the struggle” was always present, accepting “handouts,” gifts, or financial contributions from others could be complex and confusing well into adulthood. The hyper-awareness and anxiety about money never truly disappear; instead, it manifests in new environments and interactions.
9. Only purchasing things when they were on sale
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According to a study from the Journal of Consumer Affairs, many impoverished households aren’t geographically favored regarding infrastructure. From walkable streets to “third spaces” like parks and grocery stores, they’re often forced to travel to get the most basic necessities.
With the extra gas or public transportation expense, many families have even less to spare for groceries. For people who grew up in a low-income home and struggled to get by financially, they were used to only purchasing items when they were on sale. It might have been an annoyance as a child, but now it’s become a helpful spending habit.
Of course, this isn’t just true of necessities like groceries or school supplies, like your childhood experiences — it’s also a habit for the more luxurious expenses you make in adulthood. Why buy a new Ninja appliance at full price when someone will be selling it on Facebook Marketplace in a month?
10. Staying home alone from a young age without a babysitter
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A problem that’s grown exacerbated in today’s economy, childcare has always been relatively inaccessible to families in poverty, especially those without relatives, grandparents, or inter-generational households to lean on. Because their parents likely worked long hours and couldn't afford basic childcare, people who grew up never having enough money usually experienced having to "babysit" themselves and their siblings.
They were taught to look after themselves and their younger siblings, cook their meals, and even run errands without the supervision of a parent. Experiences like this often force impoverished kids to “grow up” faster than their peers, because they're worried about money, safety, and dinner on the table at night rather than an upcoming test or friendship dilemma at school.
11. Going on 'vacation' at a nearby hotel instead of traveling
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According to SquareMouth, a travel insurance company, the average cost of a vacation in 2025 was estimated to be around $7,000, up almost 25% from the prior year. With the exorbitant amount of money it costs to travel, a low-income home could never make nearly enough to cover those costs, all while taking care of their basic necessities first.
For people who grew up never having enough money, a "staycation" at a local hotel, either overnight or for the weekend, was a normal experience. Families could bring their own food to prep, spend quality time together, and watching movies or television in bed all weekend. It may not have been a vacation at a glitzy resort, but it was a nice getaway regardless.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a senior editorial strategist with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.
