well, i grew up on the poor side of things too, i had times when i had to live through no electricity or hot water -- pretty crappy, but you learn a few tricks of the trade to get by, sorta like MacGyver and shit
once you get a job and start earning your own cheese, it gets better, since you have money, but the downfall is that usually your parents will start taxing you for money (i.e. "rent") so there goes a nice chunk of your money
i'd still say i live in the lower side of things, but now that i'm making more than anyone in my family, it doesn't seem so bad.