[Christen]

so along with starting fresh with a new healthy lifestyle fitness and food wise we are also starting fresh financially...well sorta...got into a large amount of cc debt due to me being a stay at home mommy while my babies were babies but I am back at work full time now and we are paying down the cc debt and using cash only and it feels GOOD! Just transferred our balances to one cc with 0% for a year and plan to have it all gone in under 2 years...woohoo!!! Anyone else trying to get financially fit too?

[swtbttrfly23]

Me too! I don't have babies or a husband, but it's been a rocky road for me. I always assumed that after college I'd get some awesome jobs right away and they never came, but I had already spent the money. And then I got a little bit of a handle on it, and then I moved out to Los Angeles to work in the film industry (I'm a freelance costume designer) and it just got worse! So now I'm just trying to figure it all out and make ends meet. I hate being so nervous about money so much, but it's getting better, and work is picking up a lot. I'm so ready to get it under control, just like my weight.

We are the masters of our domains, let's do this!!!

[nina125]

My husband and I graduated about 2 years ago. We both had to put ourselves through school, pay for our wedding, etc. So we ended up amassing a sizable student loan and credit card debt by the time we graduated. We both make good money, so I know that we can pay it off within a year.

However, everytime we make a dent in our debt, something or the other happens and we end up back in square one. Last year, we almost paid off 1 cc and my husband was rushed into surgery because he had a cyst that got infected. Most of the surgery, ER visit and hospital stay was covered by insurance, but still we had to pay around 1.5k. Then we paid that off and I got laid off from work.

I got a better job that pays more now, and so did my husband. So we are hoping that this year is better than last and we pay off our debt soon and buy a house while the housing market is still down.

[nelie]

I got into debt after graduating from college from having to buy 'stuff' like a car, pay for can insurance, furniture for my apartment, etc and also dreams of traveling Luckily, I was able to pay it off after a couple years of cutting back. Our current debt only consists of our mortgage and we make extra payments toward our mortgage so that should be paid off early as well.

[rakel]

Fortunately, DH and I don't have any student loans, but we were not making much money for awhile and accrued some debt. Since we've been married we've eliminated at least 60% of our credit card debt, and next month will be our last payment on a personal loan. We're also aiming to be completely credit card debt free within the next two years, while also building a reserve so we can possibly purchase a house. The good thing is that we are not adding any new debt, except for the car we bought a couple years ago that was desperately needed. Even then, we only bought a used one for around 10k.

[ERHR]

I have given a lot of thought to how losing weight and getting finances in order dovetail. You can gain weight or take on debt slowly by living/eating beyond your means or it can happen all at once in a crisis situation. To reverse the damage it's really all about discipline (with little splurges if your personality needs them) and slow progress - maybe steady or maybe in fits and starts.

Right after I graduated from college I started learning about personal finance and it became sort of a hobby for me. I've given casual advice to a lot of my friends and that has been fun. I was fortunate to get into it so early - I knew not to amass any consumer debt. Because my husband and I are renters, our only debt is my student loans from undergrad. We have the full amount of money to pay them off now but since they are subsidized and in deferment until I finish grad school we decided to invest the money to try to grow it a little bit. We just recently made the decisions of how to invest it so all the research and stuff we learned is at the forefront of my mind.

I just want to say kudos to all of you for making efforts to pay off debt and get your finances in order! You're doing a great work!