We never had extra cash to purchase gold or silver. We had to use most of our retirement savings for a life-threatening medical situation for one of our children (after we retired) and haven't (and won't) be able to build it back better (or at all actually).
Sucks, but we can make it - not including debt payments.
The system will crash. The people who hold your debt will fail. The system will be exposed as having been a fake propped up system for decades. And it's going to hurt. Be ready for it.