Money Issues 

'Step One: We admitted we were powerless over debt – that our lives had become unmanageable'

Step One from The Twelve Steps of Debtors Anonymous

Young woman in the dark with glasses looking at her phone screen that is lighting up her face.

What prepares us to take our first step in DA recovery? One simple truth: we can no longer ignore the financial distress that has burdened our lives. The circumstances we find ourselves in are troublesome at best. We may have been running from our problems for some time, expending great energy either avoiding or trying to keep up with financial obligations that exceeded our resources. Things did not add up.

Those of us who had made concerted efforts to stop incurring unsecured debt in the past found ourselves unable to pass up a good deal or a new credit card or bank loan. Some of us had even worked to become debt free, only to find ourselves caught again in the cycle. Many of us thought more money would solve our problems but found that no matter how much we earned, our compulsive spending our outpaced our income. Others of us felt paralysed to spend or to make any financial decisions.

We were beside ourselves. Unmanageable chaos about money finally brought us to the rooms of DA. The pain we felt was undeniable. Yet it is precisely out of this pain and desperation that we discover the willingness, however small, to allow ourselves to stop fighting. Our compulsive debting problem is, and always was, bigger than us. This recognition of powerlessness is the beginning [of recovery]. 

from Debtors Anonymous 12 Step Study Guide for DA and BDA

As a next step, you may wish to read The Twelve Promises of Debtors Anonymous and Find a Meeting

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