“It came to a point where I was completely suffocated," Ms D'Souza, 39, says. "I was living from one paycheque to the other and hoping to get an increment or some other incentive to pay off my dues. I kept accumulating debt for seven years. "When I fell short of cash, I would get myself another credit card. I was spending to maintain a lifestyle," she adds. The former accountant decided to get a personal loan to pay off her credit cards and have just the one instalment to pay for each month. She took out a loan for Dh70,000 in 2012, closed five credit cards, settled the dues on another one with a bonus she received from her employer and retained two cards.