words Alexa Wang

Our access to easy credit over recent years coupled with our aspirational culture has been a heady brew. Yes, it has meant we’ve been freed up in many cases to buy things to make our lives better and then pay this off later.

In many ways it has made our lives better. It has also though unleased a mountain of debt across the UK. Maybe of us got used to the idea of free and easy credit. That was a mistake. Many of us know just how hard it is to rid your life of debt.

When the financial crash hit many of those easy credit lines were suddenly withdrawn. The banks wanted their money back. This caused a nasty shock to ripple across the country as many people simply could not afford to pay them back. You’d think we would have learnt from this shock. I’m afraid though many people are still up to their eyes in debt and now the banks are much more willing to give out easy credit once more.

The letters have started to appear again. Through our letterboxes we get the promise of free and easy credit. The problem is it is so inviting to take the easy credit but it can land you in a mess. It is much harder go get out of this mess that get into it.

It’s not jut a UK problem. In the US debt isn’t going down in the wake of the financial crisis it. It is back now on the rise. Across many countries in the western world we are still saddled with debt. South African householders are heavily reliant on debt for their everyday living. This reliance on debt though can have a detrimental effect on our health and lifestyles.

So how can we get around this problem of debt that is having an effect on so many of us? Well the first thing is to accept responsibility. It is easy to try and hide from reality when debt is spiralling out of control. Ignore advice such as – how to eliminate debt quickly or those how to get rid of debts mantras – they don’t work.

Don’t try to escape debt with more debt. There is a tendency to think in the short term when faced with debt. How do I get out of this predicament? That where short term lenders feed on the vulnerable. If I could just get through this month I’ll be fine. So people take out a pay day loan and then next month the very same problem comes around only worse as you now have interest to pay.

We have to break the cycle and look long term at debt. First of all we need to look at our outgoings. Is there anything we’re paying for we could in reality do without? Do you really need that subscription to the local gym that you’ve never used or the full Sky package?

Then it’s time to hack away at those debts. Citizens Advice can help you with this if you call or visit them. Start with the debts with the highest interest first. These are the ones causing you the most problems long term. If you can use any spare money to throw at getting down an achievable debt goal. So that credit card with a high rate that you never use has to go. It will be hardest trying to pay of that first one.

After that it should get easier as you will find that you’re paying out a little less each month as you pay off each debt small or large. This gives you a little more extra cash to attack that next debt Little by little your struggle with debt will ease. It’s frustrating and it takes time but this is really the only way to tackle debt. It’s tough but it all gets easier as time goes on and well worth it in the end.