Woman visiting the US is shocked by the outrageously high cost of living: 'How does anyone survive'

The value of money over the past few decades has risen like crazy, all due to the terrible economy and massive inflation. Everything is getting more and more expensive. The rich are getting richer while the poor suffer more with each passing day. A recent video posted by a woman called Vanessa—who goes by @wanderonwards on TikTok—shows how difficult it is for people to survive in the United States amidst the high cost of living.

In the video she posted on the social media platform, she is seen checking out of Whole Foods. She has bought only one thing from the grocery store, which is a single meal for a single adult. However, the price that the prepacked meal cost her was quite steep. In the audio of her six-second video, she exclaims and says, "Oh my God. I am never going to financially recover from this." She emphasizes on the fact that she is shocked by how people are able to survive in the country with basic necessities like food are so expensive.

In the video, the overlay text asks us how people even manage to live in the United States of America, given the high cost of living. One meal at Whole Foods, consisting of two pieces of chicken and a box of vegetables, cost her over $22. The text reads, "How does anyone survive in America? This is $22.60 for a box of vegetables and two chicken pieces."

According to a survey article by Forbes in August 2023, we see that one of the top problems in America, as per Americans themselves, is inflation. As we all know, irrespective of where one lives, inflation erodes your power to purchase. One would need to be spending $98,000 today for the same things that would have cost $75,000 a decade ago, back in 2013. While your location in the US will also affect your cost of living and purchasing power, the data by the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that the salary of an average American is about $61,900.

The comment section was full of people either empathizing with Vanessa or asking her to choose an alternative grocery store instead of Whole Foods. @katsuspamusubi said, "Next time, hit a salad bad (no taxes) and choose a bigger container (tare weight deducted). Takes off a couple of bucks." @jjax83 gave a reality check and suggested, "If you're struggling, the whole paycheck isn't the place to go."

@hairlineszn mentioned, "I don't know about you but Whole Foods is not necessarily known as a cheap store." @poopedinurshoe2 said, "There are no Whole Foods where us lower class live. That is $10 here." @zygotr also gave a morally gray life hack that said, "Buy 10, take a little from each, return all 10. The excuse is that the meeting was canceled. Free food, yum." @roseducharme747 reminisced about better times and said, "No! I used to have lunches and/or dinners at Whole Foods. They used to have chef plates for $12! Was one protein and two sides!"

You can follow Vanessa (@wanderonwards) on TikTok for more lifestyle content.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on 1.4.24. It has since been updated.