In 2012 I was 'normal.'

I had credit cards, student loans, a car payment, a mortgage, and 0% financing for furniture. Then one day, my husband told me he no longer wanted to be with me. My life fell apart. My household income was cut in half. And now I was a single parent. I was no longer able to make the monthly payments. I never imagined I would be in this situation.

The stress of living off of credit cards and growing debt was suffocating. I knew I had to make a change. After a lot of tears, complaining, and research, I came up with a plan to pay off the consumer debt. I sat my daughter down and explained that mom had to make some changes. That we were going to be on a budget, I was no longer going to use a credit card, and I explained to her how I got into this situation. I then sat my parents down and told them that I was in a big mess, but I had a plan. They were disappointed that I was in debt.

After two years of hard work, sacrifice and a lot of 'no's', I paid off over $32,000 of debt! I was debt free!!! It felt great!!! I told everyone who would listen! It was the best feeling in the world!

My next step was to save up a three to six-month emergency fund. In 2016, I was hit with an emergency. My HVAC system went out. And it was hot! I took every penny out of my savings account (and checking account) to pay cash for the HVAC. That same week, I received divorce papers. After reading the paperwork, I knew I needed an attorney. After explaining to my parents that I had spent every cent in my savings account to pay for the HVAC system, and could not afford an attorney. They agreed to lend me the $4,000 for the attorney. And now I was back in debt.

Over the next year I worked hard to pay my parents back. It was the best feeling when I wrote the final check!! I was debt free again!

The next step was to refill the emergency fund. The next thing I knew, I had another emergency. This time it was a $12,000 plumbing problem. Thanks to my emergency fund, I was able to pay the bill in cash.

The best part of my story is that my daughter, who is in college, has no debt. When I heard her say tell her grandparents that she does not borrow money, I knew that all of my hard work and sacrifice was worth it. Not only did I change my relationship with money, I changed the way my daughter handles money. I changed my family tree.

Using my process, I have helped clients pay off thousands of dollars of debt. From paying off large car loans, to creating a step by step plan to pay off over $100,000 of student loan debt, my program has given my clients the steps to gain control over money. Whether you have $500 in debt or $100,000 in debt, you too can have financial peace.