Financial guru was once credit crunched

Then one day, Marcia Brixey’s dog, Arfie, gobbled down a ham bone and became so ill, he had to be rushed to the veterinarian for emergency surgery.

The Brixeys were overjoyed that their beloved Schnauzer-poodle mix survived, but the ordeal was not over. The second shock hit with the arrival of the vet’s bill for $1,200.

They didn’t have the money and couldn’t put it on their maxed out credit cards. They had to borrow from Brixey’s parents.

"I never want to be in that situation again,” Brixey, 53, said.

Brixey found it was easy for her and her husband, Steve, to rack up $10,000 in credit card debt.

"We had a really good reason for that, but I don’t remember what it was,” she said with a laugh.

People are definitely secretive about credit card debt, said Jennifer Wallis, 36, vice president of Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Central Oklahoma, which provides free credit counseling. It’s not unusual for people to keep debts from their spouses or best friends.

"To a lot of people, it’s a shameful secret,” Wallis said.

But sexy is the feeling of freedom when you get credit card debt under control, she and other experts say.

"Credit card debt is the No. 1 reason people call us,” Wallis said.

All people need to know they aren’t the only ones in a credit card bind, she said. And with the right tools and education, it’s fairly simple to get out. Wallis said about two-thirds of her clients manage to break the credit card bind after they’ve adopted some lifestyle changes and become aware of spending habits. Another one-third need the service’s debt management plan, which costs a set-up fee of $40 and a sliding fee of up to $35 per month.