Debt can also impact your health

A 2008 Associated Press survey conducted to determine the impacts of debt stress on health found that among people who reported high debt stress, 27 percent had ulcers or digestive tract problems, compared with eight percent for those with low levels of debt stress; 44 percent suffered from migraines and headaches, compared to 15 percent in the other group; 29 percent suffered severe anxiety and 23 percent had severe depression, compared with four percent on both counts in the low-debt stress group.

Six percent reported heart attacks ? double the rate for those with low debt stress ? and 51 percent had muscle tension, including pain in the lower back (compared with 31 percent).

The survey found that people who reported high debt stress were also much more likely to have trouble concentrating and sleeping. The bottom line? Debt is more than just a financial issue, and the stress associated with it can have a serious long-term impact.

"Typical symptoms of stress can be physical, such as fatigue, headaches, nausea, indigestion, rashes and cramps," says Nabeel Yasin, a biokineticist at Ubuntu Wellness Solutions, but often overlooked are the mental or emotional symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, anger, fear, and feelings of hopelessness.

According to Cassey Amoore at the South African Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag), debt stress can exacerbate, or even trigger, depression and it's important that you talk to someone about the financial pressures you?re under, rather than keeping them bottled up.

"We are receiving a high volume of calls from family breadwinners who are incredibly stressed out because they don't know how they'll be able to access money for food, or school fees, or because their house has been repossessed and they don't know where else to turn," says Amoore.

"If you're feeling trapped in a desperate situation, contact Sadag. Talking about the problem will ease the pressure and may even lead to finding a solution you have not thought of yourself."

"Debt counselling also provides an opportunity to talk openly about the problem, but by the time people come to see the counsellors, they're usually in such a state of emotional upset that they don't know what to do," says Moeshfieka Botha, a marketing manager at Credit Matters.

"The message we'd like to spread is that there is help available, and that it's in your best interests to start addressing the problem before it spirals even further out of control. Seeing a debt counsellor and going under debt review will not remove the responsibility of making payments, but it will make it easier."

No legal action, summonses, judgments or repossessions can take place while you are under debt review, so your burden is automatically lightened. "You're not alone in this situation, so don't let shame or embarrassment prevent you from seeking help if you need it," Botha says.