Financial Crisis 101

Suze's third step is to get health and term life insurance. If you already have health insurance—great! But Suze says to make sure you don't cancel your policy to save a few bucks. "Do you understand that the number one reason for bankruptcy in the United States today is bankruptcy over medical bills? Don't ruin your life forever because you think you can go without health insurance," she says.

For your life insurance policy, Suze says term life insurance—which is good for a specific period of time—is the way to go. "You are to stay away from whole life, universal and variable life insurance, do you hear me?" she says.