I COULDN'T AFFORD MY FRIENDS

When Tej Patel, 41, went through some major life changes, she experienced a friendship wealth gap

- FRANCES LEATE

Picking up the pace in my designer heels, as I walked to my banking and investment job in the City, I checked my phone. It was summer 2018 and I was keen to see where my friend had booked for our meal on Saturday night. ‘Nobu, nice choice,’ I replied back, already looking forward to our fortnightly dinner date.

My job in the City was stressful and with a five-year-old daughter and three-year-old son at home, I really enjoyed time with my friends on the weekends, when my husband would take the reins and I could have some fun.

I had a couple of really close friendships and we regularly went on dinner dates to lavish restaurants, nights out to fancy bars and booked girls’ holidays to places like Dubai, Cyprus and Marbella. I earned a very good salary and my husband, who was in the same field, also did well, so I rarely thought about the cost of everything.

EVERYTHING CHANGED

My friends and I all had similar careers and while I knew how privileged we all were to be able to afford our fancy cars, nice homes and enviable lifestyles, if I was being honest, I probably took it all for granted.