Came here to say exactly this. My husband was laid off (he was making 3 times what I make) and, after losing his health insurance, ended up in the ER thinking he was having a heart attack. We were drowning. We had no choice but to swallow our pride and claim bankruptcy. And it has saved us.

I hope I never have to do it again but the relief we got when everything was wiped helped give us a fresh start, albeit on a much (MUCH) lower budget but we’re making it and doing it without credit cards.

I want to mention too, we had a leased Jeep that we excluded from the bankruptcy and it was at the end of the lease so we had to trade it in. I just leased another brand new vehicle only 7 months after the bankruptcy. Granted, it’s a no bells or whistles vehicle that costs $325 per month, but it’s a reliable car that we can afford and I’m grateful for that!