If I believed in God - I would pray for P2F and SSTR to stop every day!
Sorry guys, but if you one day 20 years from now wants to be in the pointing end of a nice jet - and being able to pay the mortgage and see your family some times. Then stop this!
How hard it may seem, there is ONLY one thing to do! Wait, wait, wait, right now the planet is full with unemployed fATPL's and even experienced rated pilots. If young punks continue to P2F and SSTR there will be no real FO jobs in 20 years!! And if your lucky you can pay your own upgrade...
Your chance is out there, but not now and maybe not in the next year, so save your money, go get a job that pays the bills or study something else, keep current, and wait for the market to pick up..... Unless of course you can look in the mirror and say that 20 years from now flying is the pay itself, then go on buy your rating and pay to work...
But some of us try to make a living here, and move up to the big bucks one day....and for every P2F bloke, that day moves further away...