Debt can be stressful... you may feel like there is no hope of getting out of debt. If you find yourself in this situation, there are actually many things you can do, so don't give up hope! The main thing is not to panic and to take time to work out a plan to get out of debt.The first thing to do is to be honest with your situation and find out exactly how much debt you are in. Take some time to sit down and figure out exactly how much you owe, who you owe it to, and how much you have to pay on a monthly basis.
The second thing you need to do is to determine how much you have available each month to pay towards your debts. To do this, you'll need to add up your monthly expenses, including the monthly payments on your debts, which you determined in the first step. Gather your bank statements, check registers, credit card statements and receipts for the last 6 months to determine how much you spend on a monthly basis.
The third thing you need to do is determine how much your monthly income is. If you bring home more than you spend each month, then decide how much extra you can put towards your debts each month. If you spend more than you bring home each month, then you will need to make some decisions, such as cutting back on expenses that aren't necessary. You may need to get creative for a while to see where you can cut back. Or, you may want to consider getting a part time job to get caught up on your debts and to build up a cushion so you don't get into debt again.
After you've done these exercises, if you find that you are in over your head, you have several options available. You can call your creditors and ask them to work with you by lowering interest rates, lowering your payment amount, or allowing you to skip a payment or two until you can get caught up. There are also several non-profit agencies that offer budgeting and debt management help for free or for minimal costs (just be careful; there are many scams out there, so be sure you are working with a non-profit agency with your best interests in mind).
The most important thing to do if you find yourself in debt is to not panic. Be honest with yourself about your situation and be constructive by thinking of the positive things you can do to help yourself get back on the right track.
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