An Omaha woman found herself swamped in credit card debt, feeling as if she had no way to escape it. But after asking for advice, she is now nearly debt free.

The woman, identified as “Kathy”, says her credit card balances began skyrocketing several years ago, after loser her job.

“I couldn’t eat. I couldn’t sleep. I was losing weight. And you try to keep it together because you don’t want your child to see you’re in this emotional panic all the time,” she said.

Kathy was trying to survive as a single mom, but her savings would only cover the basics, such as groceries. So she began putting purchases on her four credit cards.

Lisa Cameron with Credit Advisors says situations like there are happening more often, and that there’s a no-brainer method of discovering you need help.

“If you’re leaving, you’re going to work, you’re driving somewhere to take the kids to the soccer game, whatever, and you’re thinking about your bills, you need to call someone.”

On a positive note, more consumers are willing to talk about their debt problems in the open.

There are many benefits to debt management programs:

- Combining all of your debt into one monthly payment.
- Working with creditors to reduce the amount you owe, helping you get out of debt faster.

Kathy says she will be debt free in two years, thanks to smart money-managing decisions.

“I’ve learned to live without a lot of those little extra things that I used to think made me happy, but they really didn’t.”

She also got rid of all of her credit cards – opting to pay solely with cash.

Many credit counselors will help get you on a budget for free, but it’s up to you to follow it.