If you’ve ever been in debt, you know that it can feel like you’re drowning. The more money you owe, the harder it is to catch up. If you end up making payments late on your credit cards, you’re charged high interest payments, which only makes catching up on your bills and paying back your debt that much harder.

Simply keeping your head above water isn’t enough – you have to keep on top of your current bills while trying to pay off your debt as much as possible.

If that seems like too tall an order, think again – staying in debt is far more stressful than clawing your way out of it.

Here are three reasons why being under a mountain of debt is the worst.

The Annoying Phone Calls

Endless phone calls day and night from creditors and even lawyers is stressful, annoying and distracting.

Even if you simply ignore the constant phone calls and mailed letters, the problem isn’t going to go away.

The best thing you can do is answer the phone, talk to the caller about your options and get anything you agree to in writing before you start making payments. Even if you can only tell them that you’re not able to make a payment yet, it may help the calls ease temporarily.

You Have a Lack of Spending Power When You Are Under a Mountain of Debt

You know that new camera you’ve been eyeing?

Or the laptop you need because yours just crashed?

Or that car that’s pretty much a necessity since yours has become a money pit?

Good luck getting any of those things if you have a terrible credit score.

You probably won’t be able to get a credit card, loan or financing, and even if you can, it will come with such a low limit or such a high interest rate that it will barely be worth it.

Always Worrying About Your Debt

Chances are that you won’t realize how much your debt is weighing you down emotionally until it’s gone and you feel the weight lifted off your shoulders.

Worrying about money, checks bouncing all the time, and your utilities being shut off because you can’t make your payments on time, is awful.

This constant concern and stress is probably disrupting your sleep, focus, relationships and happiness.

If this situation describes you, understand that trying to sort out your finances on your own may not be the best way to handle it.

A good plan is to speak with professionals that deal with financial issues everyday.

There may be things that you can do today to sort out your situation. Steps that you can quickly take. But you won’t know what those steps are until you speak to someone for help.

Not sure where to turn? There are a lot of companies out there that will help you figure out your options and get you started on a good plan to fix your credit issues. There’s no need to continue living the way you are.