One of the first things you will need to do is acknowledge your debt's existence. Then you will need to devise a plan to get rid of it. Usually paying it off is  good way to get rid of it.


First, you want to list out all your household expenses (utilities, phone, cable, trash, insurance, gas, food,etc), mortgage, car loans, minimum credit card bills.  (Everything including gas for your car, and whatever else it requires to run your household.
 
Figure out your monthly take home income against your monthly out going. If there is money left over, continue. If not then you will need to  figure out ways to cut back on what you can if possible.  If after that point you are still upside down on your household finances, you will need to either increase the incoming cash flow, or consider other options such as selling things or consulting a licensed professional to help you determine the best course of action for your family's finances.

Then list all bills, such as credit card debt , student loans, medical bills, car loans, etc.
Continue  making minimum payments on everything, and select one thing that you want to pay off quickly. Start with the smallest first. Let's just say that you have a $600 store credit card @ 22% apr  and a $5000 student loan @ 8% apr.  The logical choice is to go for the easiest with the higher interest rate.  Did you realize if you sent that credit card $208 per month approx, it would be paid off in 3 months. Leaving extra cash flow to apply to the other credit card bill.  Now you have paid off two credit cards, leaving the money that you would have had to pay them, going towards something else coupled with the $150 a month you are paying out to eliminate your debt. If you have two payments to the different cards at $18 X2 credit card bills (gone) = $36 to add to your $150, now you have $186 per month to pay off debt. Get rid of something else, and apply that savings per month to your $186, and watch it grow. Debt goes away, and you will see results, which makes you do better as you go.

Now if you have bad debt (collection accounts,etc.) there is a whole different way of going about it. Do not just send people money, because they say you owe them. (Not until you check them out, check your rights out, as well as have a chance to compare facts). If you have collection accounts, you need to be sure that they are yours, and that they are legitimate. You will also need to go to debt collectors page, and read on.

If managing your debt has gotten out of hand, and you just feel too overwhelmed by it all, and just do not want to deal with it, there are options for you as well. There are plenty of professionals out there offering these services. That is correct. It is a service. "Not for Profit" does not mean free. A Credit Counselor is someone who will manage all your debt for you, and provide you with a fee service that sets up a program where you pay them one single payment every month, and they split the amount amongst all your creditors. 

Self Credit Repair

 

First thing you must do is see " collection agencies" page. Come to an understanding with each and every creditor you come in contact with. Try to include some compromises in your new agreement. ( ex. Try to include that upon satisfaction of debt, that creditor will delete themselves from credit report, and drop all accruing interest, and/or reduce total amount of owed debt..) Anything that will help your cause. Remember, all they want is their money, and in a lot of cases they are willing to bargain. So Bargain away. It doesn't hurt to bargain your debts down, before you start paying it off.

If your up to the challenge, you could be your own credit counselor, making arrangements with all your creditors. If you choose the slow and steady approach , where you break your money down to little payments to distribute among your creditors. Make sure you get all arrangements in writing  from all creditors involved.Mail checks out every month on time. Don't be late, because Most agreements will become null and void if you are even one day late. So arrangements should be made with the thought it may be due at 1st of the month. Always send it off two weeks prior to the due date, so your risk of breach of contract is low.
You could also check with your bank. Most banks offer online bill pay. You could set up payments on an automated system, so you don't have to worry about missing payments or being late due to slow mail. Some banks charge a fee for this service as others don't. So it would be wise to check with them before engaging this. You are not allowing the Collections agencies automated withdraws or debits against your account by doing this, instead you are just sending out electronic checks, and just like regular checks, there is delay time. ( you must check with your bank on that as well. There is a difference between this method , and allowing creditors access to your account.. The choice is obvious, you are better off having more control in this matter by not giving them access to automatically debit your account.

Once you start paying the creditor , you admit to owing , and in some states it restarts the statute of limitations clock, so if they could not sue you before, they can sue you now, if you miss a payment. (see statute of limitations) (see fair debt collection practices act)

Note:

When you make arrangements with creditors, get it in writing before paying one cent. Also work into the agreement that they are not allowed to give "courtesy calls" or "reminding calls" or anything else they try to call it, because they will be very annoying. You can allow them to send reminders in writing if that makes them feel better. But end the telephone calls all together once arrangement is agreed upon. Do not give them any permission to call your home, or work, or anywhere for any reason.
Also be ready to stick to the arrangement. To truly get out of debt, you will have to be disciplined, and determined to get over the hurtle.