Credit card debt can cause a lot of damage, and not just to your credit score. Credit card debt can cause stress and wreak havoc on relationships. It can also lead to depression, anxiety, and other health problems. Once you are in debt, reaching your financial goals becomes much harder. Spending money paying debt leaves you with less money for retirement savings, purchasing a home, and achieving other financial milestones.
According to a recent study, carrying significant debt can lead to more than just a bad day. Researchers followed a group of baby boomers, starting when they were between the ages of 28 and 40 and then checking in with them again in their 50’s and older. The group was then separated into subgroups based on how much unsecured debt they had. According to the data, the more unsecured debt a person had, the higher level of physical pain he or she lived with when compared to individuals in the other groups.
This study is not the first one conducted on the effects of debt on consumers’ overall health. This research, however, does show that a link exists between physical pain and how much debt a person is carrying.
The study evaluated the financial and health situations of 7,850 people within the Baby Boomer generation, originally starting with their responses the 1979 National Longitudinal Study of Youth. The researchers found that individuals who consistently carried high debt levels had a 76 percent greater chance of reporting daily chronic pain in their lives as compared to consumers who reportedly had very little to no debt.
Even individuals who had taken steps to reduce their overall debt load reported higher levels of physical pain with a 50 percent higher chance of individuals within this group feeling chronic pain.
Several different factors can play into why debt has such a negative impact on a person’s health. If a person has a significant amount of debt, he or she likely has fewer resources to use towards other areas of his or her life that would help prevent any medical issue, including adequate healthcare and preventive medicine.
Additionally, debt can lead to extra stress on that person, which can result in higher blood pressure, depression, anxiety, and other serious health issues.
It is for this reason that experts recommend consumers rid themselves of their debt load as much as possible, whether this be through payment plans with the creditors, debt consolidation or filing for bankruptcy.
When it comes to filing bankruptcy, secured debt is handled differently than unsecured debt. If you are filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case, unsecured debt normally ends up being discharged at the end of the case, while secured debt can stay with the asset. If you are struggling to pay unsecured debt, such as credit cards or medical bills, filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy case may be a viable option for dealing with the debt. If you are struggling to pay for both secured and unsecured debt, a Chapter 13 bankruptcy case may be a good option to allow you to continue paying on your mortgage and stay in your home while discharging unsecured debt at the end of the payment period. An experienced bankruptcy attorney can evaluate your financial situation, after looking at the different types of debt you are carrying to determine which plan is best for you.
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If you have questions on this topic or are in financial crisis and considering filing for bankruptcy, contact an experienced Miami bankruptcy attorney who can advise you of all of your options. As an experienced CPA as well as a proven bankruptcy lawyer, Timothy Kingcade knows how to help clients take full advantage of the bankruptcy laws to protect their assets and get successful results. Since 1996 Kingcade Garcia McMaken has been helping people from all walks of life build a better tomorrow. Our attorneys’ help thousands of people every year take advantage of their rights under bankruptcy protection to restart, rebuild and recover. The day you hire our firm, we will contact your creditors to stop the harassment. You can also find useful consumer information on the Kingcade Garcia McMaken website at www.miamibankruptcy.com.
