If your credit report has taken a few hits in the past few months, there are a number of ways to get back into better financial shape. No matter how much debt you’re currently carrying, reducing it is not a fast and easy fix; however, with some careful planning, diligence, and a commitment to practicing more responsible money management, it is possible to crawl out from under the mountain of bad financial decisions.

Even if you commit to reducing your debt and start to make some big changes to your spending habits, you’ll still have to face the consequences of your past mistakes. Developing a responsible debt management plan is key to easing the damage to your credit score. A few of the most common debt reduction options are:

• Working out a strict monthly household budget that the whole family agrees to follow
• Meeting with a reputable career counselor to consolidate bills and determine payment plans
• Cutting out any unnecessary expenses
• Consolidating debt

If you are currently making all of your payments, it will be very difficult to have your debt forgiven. Creditors typically will only forgive your debt if you can prove extreme financial hardship and absolutely cannot make your payments. You would basically need to stop making payments and let them go into delinquency before any action will be taken. You would need to participate in a debt settlement program to help your rating rebound. Enrolling in this type of program is strongly recommended over declaring bankruptcy, which is usually the last resort for most folks but not a guarantee of having your debt forgiven. It is also ten times harder to get back into good financial standing once you file. Most financial experts recommend exploring some of the other options listed above before deciding to file bankruptcy.

Age plays a factor in determining how to tackle your debt. If you are a recent college graduate, it is essential to keep as good a credit rating as possible, since you need a decent credit score to rent an apartment or buy a home as well as furnish it or buy a car. A baby boomer who is a few years’ short of retirement age will want to focus on rebuilding their nest egg and work on consolidating as much debt as possible.