I was naive in 1998 concering the bankruptcy process and I feel like number one I should have NEVER filed back then but my lawyer saw $ signs and led me to do something I never should have done....I did complete it though but my payments were outrageous..it was tough since I had almost 100% payback and I ruined almost perfect credit in the process...
Fast forward to 2007 and a gambling habit out of control. I am fabulous with money EXCEPT when it comes to gambling. Anyway, I got myself in deep. I wasted a lot of money last year running from my problems and hoping that money would solve everything..ya know, that big hit that never comes. So here I am, never one with a traditional can't stop shopping spending habit. Talk about being afraid. I knew I couldn't chase losses anymore so I contemplated moving to Vegas so I could get a dealing job making about $100,000 a year (I currently make about $55,000 a year dealing), I thought about starting my own errand business, I even briefly thought about committing suicide. I really did. I am ashamed to have even thought that but I felt I was at a dead end. I talked to a lawyer in October and I talked to another a few weeks later. I'm glad I went to the second one. He seemed to be so much more on MY SIDE. Get more than one opinion, believe me. You want your lawyer on your side, you are paying him enough.
I was really really worried sick every minute of my life over what I had done to myself and I just decided that I couldn't take the pressure anymore so I decided to file, even though I felt like a huge failure I knew that's what I needed to do. So, I filed on December 10th and was nervous as hell that my creditors would come after me since a lot of the money I lost was within about 6 months. A few of my creditors received very little money from me and one received nothing. I was floundering. I had my 341 meeting a day before my birthday on January 17th and it was SO simple. Please, all of you, don't worry about it..I was in there with a bunch of people and It was quick as lightning. Round trip took me 35 minutes to get there and get home. I really was worried about the confirmation meeting on February 12th. I thought for sure I would have some objections.
After the judge gave an hour and a half speech about how only 38% of people finish their chapter 13 and how it was in our best interests to finish it he told the room full of people (about 60 of us) that if he called your name that means you are free to go meaning no objections...etc...
I started getting really nervous after he called about 20 names and I wasn't one of them. He informed those of us left that we had objections or something else...blah..I think he wanted to scare the crap out of us and he did..you could feel the worry in the air. I was the 3rd or 4th person that he called and he verified my payment and told me there were no objections and that I was free to go....
Let me tell you guys how I have felt since that day. I have felt blessed, saved, given anothere chance by GOD. I cried to God on the way home and told him that he has given me another chance at this whole thing. I went to church Sunday and cried some more out of joy that I no longer have to kill myself worrying about bill collectors calling 50 times a day and all the mess that goes with it. I just feel so thankful so If you are going through a hard time PLEASE know that there is a light at the end of the debt tunnel, there is. This has been a real learning experience for me and I hope to help anyone that I can realize that even though we don't want to file we need to just accept that we messed up and move on..I'm trying my best to. I did want to say that my payments are very favorable to me because my lawyer was on MY SIDE. $282 a month for 60 months with my unsecured getting 0%..how we managed that, I don't know. I'm sorry for what I did to my creditors, In my heart I know I never meant to CHEAT them but I made a huge mistake. All I can do is learn from it and move on the best I can. Praise God.
Fast forward to 2007 and a gambling habit out of control. I am fabulous with money EXCEPT when it comes to gambling. Anyway, I got myself in deep. I wasted a lot of money last year running from my problems and hoping that money would solve everything..ya know, that big hit that never comes. So here I am, never one with a traditional can't stop shopping spending habit. Talk about being afraid. I knew I couldn't chase losses anymore so I contemplated moving to Vegas so I could get a dealing job making about $100,000 a year (I currently make about $55,000 a year dealing), I thought about starting my own errand business, I even briefly thought about committing suicide. I really did. I am ashamed to have even thought that but I felt I was at a dead end. I talked to a lawyer in October and I talked to another a few weeks later. I'm glad I went to the second one. He seemed to be so much more on MY SIDE. Get more than one opinion, believe me. You want your lawyer on your side, you are paying him enough.
I was really really worried sick every minute of my life over what I had done to myself and I just decided that I couldn't take the pressure anymore so I decided to file, even though I felt like a huge failure I knew that's what I needed to do. So, I filed on December 10th and was nervous as hell that my creditors would come after me since a lot of the money I lost was within about 6 months. A few of my creditors received very little money from me and one received nothing. I was floundering. I had my 341 meeting a day before my birthday on January 17th and it was SO simple. Please, all of you, don't worry about it..I was in there with a bunch of people and It was quick as lightning. Round trip took me 35 minutes to get there and get home. I really was worried about the confirmation meeting on February 12th. I thought for sure I would have some objections.
After the judge gave an hour and a half speech about how only 38% of people finish their chapter 13 and how it was in our best interests to finish it he told the room full of people (about 60 of us) that if he called your name that means you are free to go meaning no objections...etc...
I started getting really nervous after he called about 20 names and I wasn't one of them. He informed those of us left that we had objections or something else...blah..I think he wanted to scare the crap out of us and he did..you could feel the worry in the air. I was the 3rd or 4th person that he called and he verified my payment and told me there were no objections and that I was free to go....
Let me tell you guys how I have felt since that day. I have felt blessed, saved, given anothere chance by GOD. I cried to God on the way home and told him that he has given me another chance at this whole thing. I went to church Sunday and cried some more out of joy that I no longer have to kill myself worrying about bill collectors calling 50 times a day and all the mess that goes with it. I just feel so thankful so If you are going through a hard time PLEASE know that there is a light at the end of the debt tunnel, there is. This has been a real learning experience for me and I hope to help anyone that I can realize that even though we don't want to file we need to just accept that we messed up and move on..I'm trying my best to. I did want to say that my payments are very favorable to me because my lawyer was on MY SIDE. $282 a month for 60 months with my unsecured getting 0%..how we managed that, I don't know. I'm sorry for what I did to my creditors, In my heart I know I never meant to CHEAT them but I made a huge mistake. All I can do is learn from it and move on the best I can. Praise God.
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