How is it that social media can be so inherently popular and abundantly influential, yet it is widely unused by the bankrupt individual? Wouldn’t you think that, with so many people filing (or preparing to file, or thinking about filing) for bankruptcy, at least a few would start a blog and begin to write about it?
Unfortunately not.
While in pursuit to find other individuals who are (or were) in a situation similar to mine, I did manage to find my fair share of bankruptcy lawyer blogs, “build-your-credit” blogs, and even a fantastic forum for those experiencing bankruptcy. Yet a search for “personal bankruptcy blogs” yielded almost nothing.
So, I decided to do something about it.
I am here today to declare that I have declared Chapter 13 bankruptcy. The world didn’t stop, mountains didn’t crumble, and my life did not end. In fact, it ultimately got better.
I will be straightforward about the journey, pulling no punches and telling truths that were buried so deep, it almost took therapy to dig them up. Nothing will be held back. Not even the numbers, which I will share openly.
I guarantee you will be shocked by my behavior as a person. I lied to my husband almost daily to hide our financial messes. I took money when it wasn’t mine to take. And I even tried to fudge my way out of paying taxes, which almost resulted in an IRS levy of our bank accounts.
I am not among the ranks of the “bad things happen to good people” group. I never met a credit card offer that I couldn’t refuse. I loved to shop. I got into a direct sales inventory mess. And ultimately racked up over $100,000 in credit card debt alone (there was also mortgage arrears, a truck loan, and federal and state taxes.) And all that happened before I lost my job, so I can’t use being unemployed as an excuse. The only innocent people in my story are my husband and my children. The fact that he has chosen to still be married to me is something I will continue to evaluate for as long as I live.
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