Welcome to Taking Stock, a space where we can take a deep breath and try to figure out what the current state of the economy really means for our finances. Every month, personal finance expert Paco de Leon will answer your most difficult, emotionally charged questions about money.

This month, we hear from someone who is struggling to see how student loan payments will fit back into their already stretched budget. It's official: student loan payments are due, after a years-long pause, this October.

Dear Paco,

I, like many other student loan-burdened people, have not been paying my student loans during the years-long pause. I make enough to just get by and I was really betting on President Biden’s loan forgiveness plan coming through. Then the Supreme Court trampled all over that.

I don’t have a ton of extra income, and am trying to rebuild my savings after a few personal emergencies (see: a muscle strain requiring physical therapy, unforeseen car repairs, a bigger than usual dental bill) drained them.

I don’t qualify for any of the other student loan help that Biden did manage to push through, so I’m going to be paying up as of Sept. 1. How do I fit paying these loans (looking at hundreds of dollars a month) back into my life?

Sincerely,

Supremely Disappointed