She Racked Up $65,000 In Credit Card Debt, And She’s Opening Up About How She Budgets And Makes Ends Meet
So many Americans live with credit card debt, and more people are being transparent about their struggles with it.
With the cost of living being so high these days, it’s not unusual for people to accumulate debt over the years. But as long as you work hard and make a smart budgeting plan to pay off that debt over time, you’ll make it through.
One woman recently shared how she budgets her and her husband’s paychecks to support their family while living with $65,000 in credit card debt. Unfortunately, she didn’t receive a very warm response from people on the internet.
Amanda Leigh (@helloamandaleigh) is a mom and content creator who’s been very open about her experiences with credit card debt, how she accumulated so much of it, and what she’s doing to get rid of it.
In one of her videos, Amanda explains that over a year ago, she was the breadwinner for her family but lost her job out of the blue. Losing her job was a total shock, especially as she was under the impression she’d be earning a large bonus instead of getting fired.
Prior to losing her job, because she was getting such great feedback from work and thought she’d get more money, she and her husband made a lot of big purchases. They dipped into their savings to pay for some home renovations, she put down a deposit for a procedure, and they put a lot of “variable expenses” on credit cards, like their groceries and utility bills.
Then, once Amanda did get a new job seven months after losing her old one, and she and her husband were making a decent living, they focused less on paying off their debt and tried to pay for fun family experiences, like vacations to Disney, which she admits they shouldn’t have done.
Amanda also notes that she and her husband gave thousands of dollars to a friend of hers who was struggling so she could support her child.
“I don’t regret doing that, but it cost me $15,000,” says Amanda.
Haas/peopleimages.com – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
“That’s money I could have used to pay off my debt or put into savings. But she is now graduated, working in her field, [and] making a very nice income for her and her daughter.”
When Amanda made a video about how she budgets her and her husband’s paychecks with their credit card debt in mind, she received some criticism from people who claimed they were living above their means.
For instance, Amanda noted that she had spent around $387 on shopping, some of that money going toward things for her kids and $150 for her shopping at Lululemon.
Despite all the expenses that went into taking care of her and her husband’s household, they could still put $3,800 towards paying off their debt, which some consider a win.
“Life happens,” commented a TikTok user on one of Amanda’s videos.
“We do what needs to be done to get by while also enjoying life.”
“It can happen to anyone in the blink of an eye,” commented another TikTok user.
“People always think it will never happen to them. Keep doing you. You got this!”
Has your life ever been affected by serious debt?
@helloamandaleigh Budget our paycheck as someone in a shit ton of credit card debt #personalfinance #budgetmypaycheck #payday #creditcarddebt #creditcard #daveramsey #snowball #finance #budget #debttok #highearner #highearnernotrichyet #debtfreejourney #lifestylecreep #unemployed
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