Drowning in debt

First time poster, hoping I can find desperately needed advice here.

I am 10,000 euro in debt, 3,000 to the C union and 7,000 on the credit card. I am paying back the CC €160 a month which is mostly covering the interest. I am unemployed and have just finished college as a mature student, but no immediate prospect of employment. I am renting and receiving rent allowance and have no assets or savings. I receive benefit which goes toward my ex partner and children, my basic living expenses and the credit card loan. Nothing is left at the end of it and I am still not meeting my commitments, the debt is only increasing.

I don't indulge in any frivolous expenditure and lead a very frugal lifestyle.

But I don't see how this can go on, despite every effort to meet my obligations I see now that the debt is killing me and the current arrangement cannot continue.

Friends have discussed talking to the CC company, that debt forgiveness or some type of deal to repay what I can is an option, but I have no idea how to approach this in the right way. Another option would be to take out a
Loan to clear the CC debt and the high interest charges, but I fear that no-one would lend to me.

I know this level of debt may seem trivial to some people, but despite my efforts to deal with it I am failing, and the pressure is taking a profound toll on me.

I don't expect sympathy, but would be eternally gratefull to anyone who can steer me toward a solution.

Many thanks.

Many thanks Cashier for the kind words. I will certainly engage with the cc company and let them know the situation I am in. I am certainly not trying to avoid my obligations.

Is there a cerrtain approach that people could recommend, the right language to use? I am concerned that any reduction in my payments will only mean more interest and more to repay when I am failing to meet my current outgoings.

I hear great things about MABS, maybe you could try to get an appointment with your local office? They will help you draft letters to your cc company and CU and advise you the best way to deal with things.

As suggested MABS would be a help to you but their waiting list for appointments can be long, while you are waiting maybe give their helpline a call and they will advise you and their website also has template letters which you can use to send to your creditors.

Are you still using the credit card at all? I guess from the tone of your post you are not but I just wanted to confirm. I think laying out your situation to your creditors is very important, not just because they are not omniscient and (thankfully!) don't know everything going on in your life but also because it is a positive step you can take. It gives some sense of control back to you. You need to ask the credit card company (and the CU) to freeze your debt, to stop accruing interest and give you the opportunity to start making a dent in the debt.

It would also be worthwhile going into your credit union and sitting down with the loan officer there.