Take Control of Your Finances

Pamela, a 39-year-old wife and mother of two, got her own reality check when she sat down to total her credit card debt. Pamela originally thought she owed $60,000 and was shocked to find she really owed $79,000. "I wasn't honest to myself or my husband," she says.

Pamela says her debt is taking an emotional toll on her. "It's very embarrassing for me because I'm an accountant," she says.

So how did Pamela and her family get so deep into debt? "We started living a lifestyle that we were accustomed to and we could afford, and then we had children and we never changed our lifestyle," she says. "We kept living beyond our means, so here we are today."