Credit card debt can wreck relationships

Have you wondered why money troubles can tear families apart?

Consider a family we'll call The Johnsons. This family is haunted by credit card companies calling constantly.

"We have to take the phone off the hook during dinner," says the dad of the Johnson family. We'll refer to him as Chad.

Chad says that his marriage has suffered enormously because of overwhelming debt. "I used 10 credit cards to finance a business that went under," Chad confesses. "And, those credit cards have been the undoing of our family happiness."

A grandmother we'll call Jean says her grandson stole her credit cards. "They ran them up, milked the ATM machines all over town, and left me with crushing debt."

Jeans says she gave her grandson her personal identification number on five different cards, since she uses the same P.I.N. for each one. "He ruined me, and his parents are blaming me," Jean says. "I had to prosecute my own grandson as a thief to get myself off the hook."

Many families struggling to pay their mortgages or put kids through college say their real problem started with credit cards. The temptation to borrow a few thousand got them moving into a debt nightmare.

"When you pay your credit card bills on time, more cards magically arrive pre-approved in the mail," Chad Johnson says. "You start to believe a fairy godmother is giving you money to spend. This craziness has caused verbal battering between my wife and me. I am so ashamed of the way we've both behaved."

Credit card debt is responsible for lots of the economic shakiness of our country. Many families have told us they owe $40,000 or more on credit cards. They fight over who's to blame and how to manage the creditors haunting them for payments.

Money troubles can put any of us in a bad mood, but it's time to protect your family and take control if you're in this boat. Not doing anything won't work. Taking strong, positive action will work.

Here are some tips:

Get professional advice. There are plenty of debt counselors working with churches and non-profits that will help you at no cost. They can help to negotiate better options with creditors.

Don't panic. Calmly think about what you can do to pay your bills. Could you sell a property you don't need? Could you work extra hours on the weekends?