Nikki Ramskill was just 18 years old when she took out her first credit card shortly before starting medical school - despite having "no clue" about money.
By the time she reached her 30s, the now-fully qualified doctor was £60,000 in debt and didn’t know how to fix her finances.
The money she owed was made up of credit cards, loans and overdrafts, and she'd also received a £3,500 tax bill from HMRC.
But it wasn't until Nikki decided to take time off work to travel, that she realised "how terrible" her debt had become.
She admits her five-month break only made her finances worse - but Nikki says it also gave her the kick she needed to reassess her situation.
Nikki had around £10,000 in savings at the time, but said this was nowhere near enough to cover her trip and bills at home, including a flat which she partly owned in London.
She had been travelling across Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia.
“I was trying to pay my bills and also trying to pay for travelling. That was when I realised how bad it had got,” said Nikki, who is now aged 37 and lives in Milton Keynes.
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“I had always wanted to go travelling so I really wanted to go, but being away did give me time to think. I panicked because I had no money coming in.
“This was the point where I thought ‘oh my god, this is terrible’. I was on a chance of a lifetime trip that I would never get to do again.
“As soon as I got home, I decided to do something about it. I was about 31 when I finished travelling.
“The highest level of debt I got into was £60,000. I did make my situation worse by going travelling and being out of work for a while.”
Nikki had previously tried using 0% balance transfer credit cards to wipe what she owed, by shifting her debt to an interest-free deal - but she soon found she was no longer being accepted for these cards.
Typically, only those with the best credit ratings are accepted for 0% balance transfer credit cards.
After her travels, Nikki then tried tackling her debt by using the snowball method - this is when you start off by paying off the smallest of all your loans first, before moving on to the next highest one.
The idea is that by paying off one debt, you’re more motivated to keep going.
But after moving from hospital work to GP training, Nikki found her salary had decreased by around £1,000 and said she was no longer able to afford her repayments.
It was at this point where she decided to talk to her bank about a debt consolidation loan and whether this would be right for her.
A debt consolidation loan is where you take out one loan to pay off all your existing debts, so instead of making lots of repayments to different firms, you’re only making one repayment each month.
Nikki said this was the second time she had tried to consolidate her loan, as the first time “didn’t work” as she kept on spending on her credit cards.
“I cut up all my credit cards and didn’t use them because I didn’t trust myself. I had to go cold turkey,” she said.
“The good thing was it halved my payments. The other good thing was the interest rates I was paying were much lower.
“My credit cards were 11% APR and my loan was 6.2%. There wasn’t an arrangement fee or early repayment fees.
“The downside is, people who have consolidated everything into their mortgage is that they run the risk of not learning a lesson. If you’re going to do it, you have to cut all debt use out.
“I was lucky. I was in a good job and I spoke to a bank manager in person about the risks. It isn’t for everyone.”
It took Nikki around five years to pay off £60,000 worth of debt. At the time, she was earning around £2,800 each month.
She paid off £10,000 through the snowball method, around £40,000 through her loan, and then the remaining £10,000 was left to her by her father who sadly passed away.
Nikki says learning to manage her cash using Mettle, a free digital business account from NatWest, has also been crucial to the success of building up her finances.
Debt consolidation loans - the pros and cons
Before you go for a debt consolidation loan, the first thing to check is whether you can cut the costs of your debt another way.
Nikki says she was no longer able to take out a 0% balance transfer credit card, but if this is an option for you, this will be a cheaper way of clearing your debt.
You should always seek free debt advice before taking out any type of formal debt solution to make sure what you're doing is right for you, and to understand how much you'll be repaying in total and for how long.
The idea of a debt consolidation loan is that it can help to simplify your finances, so you don’t have to keep track of lots of debts - but it isn't for everyone.
For some people, it can mean you're able to bring together a number of expensive debts into one loan with a lower rate, so you spend less on interest each month.
But there can also be expensive fees attached, especially for those who want to make early repayments, says Sarah Coles, senior personal finance expert at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"You need to check the costs carefully. Some of these loans will spread repayments for longer to make monthly payments more affordable, but this means more interest mounting up," she said.
"Some debt consolidation loans will be secured against your home, so if you miss payments, your home could be at risk. Debt advisers would never suggest taking out a secured loan to repay unsecured debts.
"You should also check any fees for switching out of an existing loan deal – and whether there are any early repayment charges. It may not be an option at all if you have a poor credit history."
Ms Coles also points out that sometimes you can end up with a single unmanageable payment, which will leave you no better off than before you took out the loan.
And even if the interest rates are lower, if you're making smaller repayments for a longer period of time, the total interest that you'd end up paying back during that period could end up being bigger overall.
Three tips if you're in debt and struggling
Nikki, who now runs her website The Female Money Doctor to help inspire other people in debt, has offered the following advice to anyone who is struggling:
- Tell someone as soon as possible: "My other half knew about my debt but he didn’t know the extent of it," said Nikki.
- Speak to a free debt advisor: "There is no shame in speaking about money."
- Don't put it off: "Get help and make a decision quickly about what you want to do."
There are free organisations that will help you clear your debt:
- Citizens Advice (0800 144 8848)
- StepChange (0800 138 1111)
- National Debtline (0808 808 4000)
Always be wary of firms who try to charge you for debt help, as you can get advice without paying a penny.
