McLeod Law Offices

Our journey through the Kubler-Ross model takes us to stage four: depression. If I wrote that people who are overwhelmed by debt may be depressed, and implied that this might be some new-found discovery, some might congratulate me on my mastery of the obvious. Unfortunately, depression and debt is not something that I think can be easily explained. I think the only thing I can do is point it out.

Let me start by stating that I believe that it’s a tad too arrogant for anyone to suggest that people who are prone to depression are also prone to debt problems. It’s a broad sweeping generalization that ignores the specific issues of every day life that everyone faces. And it’s even more arrogant to suggest that people overwhelmed with debt are getting what they deserve. By seeking a discharge of their debts, honest debtors who have fallen into unfortunate circumstances are not among them.

The fact is, people get into debt problems because of things they should have controlled better. Perhaps it was a refinance that seemed like a good idea at the time. Perhaps they did everything conceivable to avoid financial collapse, yet by doing so, only made it inevitable.

Folks also get into financial trouble because of things they could not control at all. Perhaps it is a tenant on the second floor who is not longer paying rent – or condo fees. Perhaps a spouse has left the home, or has died. Perhaps they went to the doctor to get a mole on their back removed, only to discover that it metastasized to the spine. At the risk of sounding indelicate, crude and unprofessional sometimes (and this is something I remind my clients of often), shit happens.

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