by Mark Jones

Created on: July 12, 2008   Last Updated: May 07, 2012

Debt! A four letter word which can embarrass a person more than a curse ever could. It's a word that plenty of people have in their life but would not freely admit this was the case. Financial problems can affect people beyond embarrassment. Stress, marital and family problems are common outcomes for people who do not know how to deal with the problem. The grim reality of financial difficulty has also in extreme cases led to affected people taking their own life.

Over recent years, credit has been relatively easy to attain. The temptation to buy bigger houses, powerful cars and to spend heavily on credit cards has proved too much for numerous people to resist. MSN Money reports that about 43% of American families spend more than they earn this year and average households owing around $8000 in credit card debt. Figures like this are important in showing a worried debtor that they are not alone.

Creditors who lend money are going to want to get it back as quickly as possible with some heavy interest on top. If a debtor suddenly finds they are unable to pay their regular payment, they will quickly find that they will receive telephone calls and letters threatening all kinds of action against them unless the debt is repaid. For anybody finding themselves in this position for the first time, it can be a horrible and in a lot of cases, a frightening experience. These people have often no idea what to do and can find it difficult to seek help because they believe they will be judged badly by family or friends.

Most creditors will state that they are responsible lenders. Not many will advertise the fact that they are prepared to help customers who get into difficulty. The general attitude of a company that is owed money is that they will do all they can to get full repayment before their customer pays somebody else first. However, they are unable to take money that is just not available. Creditors would much rather accept a repayment agreement than saying farewell to their money forever.

When in falling into debt, the worst thing that can be done is nothing. The problem is not going to go away, so direct action is required to tackle the problem and ease the debtors mind.

1. Sit down with paper and a calculator and work out exactly how much you owe and what each regular repayment is.

2. Prioritise your debt. The more you owe, the more you should try to pay. Make a plan that will say how much you can comfortably repay your various creditors. Set higher repayments against

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