Hi all,

I struggle with money management even when I'm stable. But it gets much worse when I'm manic. Last time I went manic, I got myself into about $11,000 of debt. So I gave all my credit cards and account information to my father to hold onto so it wouldn't happen again. That's fine and all, but now I just have cash and my debit card, and I worry about not having something for emergencies.


How do you protect yourself from going into debt? Should I close accounts, reduce credit limits? I don't think it's sustainable for my father to manage my money forever, and this way I effectively can't travel or anything like that. I'm struggling with trying to figure out how to make sure I have enough for an emergency, but not allowing myself to get into even more debt.

For context, I'm 27, and sort of unemployed. (It's complicated).

How do you manage credit? How do you manage your money effectively even through mania?