A mum-of-two says she is "much happier" after swapping her job and semi-detached house for a life off-grid.
Lindsay Banks, 41, says she is saving £750 per month after a "revelation" during lockdown. She quit her job as a Tesco food trades manager, bought a caravan on Facebook Marketplace and moved to the Yorkshire countryside.
Lindsay, who is now self-employed, used to pay £1,000 a month on rent and now just spends £250, which includes the cost of electricity to power her mobile home. The caravan is parked up in a green space in York and she lives there with both of her children, YorkshireLive reports.
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Speaking about her new lifestyle, which has seen her swap 10 cups of coffee a day for nettle soup and parsley tea, Lindsay said: "I had never stayed in a caravan before. The financial pressure of living in the house was intense.
"The houses I was looking at cost £800 a month plus bills. I was paying about £140 a month to heat my three-bed semi.
"Since I’ve moved on site I’ve gone through one Calor gas bottle that cost £60. We have mains electric that goes straight into the caravan and I have a lovely electric heater that is 2,000 watts at its max.
"The cost of electric is included in the rent of £60 a week. I don’t have the money to buy my own site right now, but I’m working towards that."
The mum-of-two says she gets up in a morning to the sound of tweeting birds and is surrounded by the countryside. She now uses flowers and herbs to make her meals, and the lack of storage in the caravan has stopped her from hoarding.
Lindsay said: "I have been really getting into gardening now. When I moved it made me really declutter.
"I threw out books and piles of photographs. It was a really cathartic journey for me. I am more connected with the seasons and cycles of nature.
"I know how to make parsley tea and my kids play outside every morning. Life has really got back down to basics for me now, I am more connected to the seasons and I am much happier."
The author added that when she told her family and friends about her lifestyle change they were supportive, adding: "I've had no negativity about it they all just want me to be happy and I really am."
She has also now tapped more into her spiritual side and has created her own publicity company aiming to empower other single women who are mums. She said: "I'm still learning about my new life. I compare my journey to the tortoise and the hare - it's been a slow journey but I got to my happiness eventually.
"I have now set up a self help publishing service so people can do it on their own. I have a book coming out sharing my journey about my off-grid life and I want others to feel like I can do the same."
The YouTuber said she would tell other to "give it a go". She said: "I have got friends who are living in vans. Because of the way the caravan is set up, it is like a home. I would tell people to give it a go and try it.
"I sometimes walk on the mud with no shoes on and other times I pop on my heels."
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