How Did This Happen to Me? A Story in Debt Recovery

Dave was an average guy with a wife, 3 kids (from a previous marriage) and a decent job. His wife also worked part-time at a local bank. He and his wife purchased a used car, furniture for the house and clothes for work using their credit cards. They were "getting started."

"We can handle this," Dave said. "Everyone does this."

Then, his debt got out of control.

"I felt horrible," Dave said. "My wife and I argued constantly. I don't even know how it happened. One day we were over $20,000 in credit card debt."

While making his monthly payments at the percentage of interest he was paying, Dave didn't realize that only $1 or $2 was being applied to the account balance. The rest of the payment went toward interest. "It seemed like we never had any cash. And we weren't exactly living it up," Dave explains. "We were buying things we needed. We just didn't understand how credit worked or how to use it right. We fought all the time."

Eventually, the situation got so bad that Dave’s wife left him. To make matters worse, shortly thereafter he was suddenly laid off from his job. Dave's life was spiraling out of control and he didn't know how to stop it.

So what did he do to start the road to recovery?

The first step in changing his life was finding a new job. Dave answered an ad in the paper for a customer service representative. When he went on the interview, he learned that the company helped people get out of debt.

"I couldn't believe it," Dave says. "I was starting this new job helping other people who had gotten into the same situation I was in. I learned things on the job that I was able to apply to my own situation at the same time.”

Four years later, Dave debt was paid off. He had a new career, a new car, and a new lease on life.

"What I went through helps me be successful in my job. I can say to people, 'I've been where you are; you can do this; you owe it to yourself'."