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My salary? Sure. My weight? Sure. My credit card debt? That's private!

Forget politics and religion. When it comes to talking with people we’ve just met, a new study finds that the most uncomfortable topic of discussion is how much we owe in credit card debt.

About 85 percent of people surveyed on behalf of CreditCards.com said they’d be somewhat or very unlikely to discuss credit card debt with someone they’d just met.

That makes credit card woes more taboo than any other topic the respondents were asked about, including their salaries, mortgage payments, weight, health problems and love life details.

Politics and religion are often considered to be the most taboo topics to bring up with people you don’t know well or don’t want to offend. But the survey found that nearly 50 percent of those surveyed would be somewhat or very likely to bring up their political views with a relative stranger, while nearly 60 percent were likely to bring up their religious views.

By comparison, only about 12 percent said they’d be likely to bring up the amount they owe on their credit cards.

That’s not surprising given the uncomfortable, and often contradictory, relationship many of us have with credit cards, said Lucia Dunn, an economics professor at Ohio State University who has studied Americans’ attitudes about debt extensively.

“Credit card debt, you know, does have a stigma,” Dunn said. “It implies a lack of self-control.”

That’s unlike other types of debt, such as mortgages, which many still see as a good investment despite the recent housing crisis.

We may judge others harshly for having credit card debt, but millions of Americans use credit cards to cover everything from an unexpected car repair to a family vacation.

It wasn’t always so common. Americans come from a long history, going all the way back to the days of Benjamin Franklin, of valuing austerity and staying out of debt.

But especially in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Dunn noted that it became much more acceptable – and easy – to take on credit card debt.

Americans are currently carrying about $848 billion in revolving debt, which is mostly made up of credit card debt, according to the Federal Reserve. That’s down from a high of more than $1 trillion in 2008, as the nation was falling deeply into recession.

The ensuing financial crisis caused some Americans to willingly get a better handle on their credit card debt, while others found their credit lines cut off and were not able to take on as much credit card debt as they had in the past.

Some Americans who were not able to get rid of their credit card debt during that period likely are still struggling with it, according to separate research Dunn has conducted. The weak economy and tight job market also may have left some with little choice but to rely on credit cards to get by.

Another reason people may be reluctant to talk about credit card debt is that it’s one of the most stressful kinds of debt, second only to payday loans according to Dunn’s research.

She suspects that’s partly because of the techniques that debt collectors sometimes use to get people to repay credit card debt.

Unlike car loans or mortgages, credit card debt isn’t secured by a thing that the bank can simply repossess. That means collectors are left trying to persuade people to give them the cash, in some cases through repeated phone calls and other types of contact.

The CreditCards.com survey of 1,000 people was conducted in March by GfK Custom Research. It has a 3 percent margin of error.

Related: One in four Americans have more credit card debt than savings

Joe Raedle / Getty Images

Buried in debt? There are several strategies you can try to dig yourself out of the hole.

You've set your goal to get out of debt. Now you have to figure out how to achieve that goal. But with so many different experts touting different solutions, how do you pick the one that will work for you? Here are five options:

DIY debt reduction
With the DIY approach, you make the minimum payments on all of your debts except the one you are targeting. There are two main variations on this strategy: the snowball method, and the avalanche approach. With the snowball method you pay off the account with the smallest balance first. With the avalanche approach, you pay off the credit card with the highest interest rate first. Either way, once the first debt is paid off, you apply the payment you were making to the next target debt, and so on until they are all gone.

DIY debt reduction may work for you if: You have a clear plan and are committed to sticking with it; you are able to stop taking on new credit card debt for the duration of the program; and you have enough cash flow to pay off your balances in approximately three years or less. (Any longer than that and you increase the risk that unexpected expenses will derail your plan.)

To make it work: Create a written plan using a program like SavvyMoney, ReadyForZero or Zilch, all of which will allow you to create a specific repayment plan and try out different scenarios. For some borrowers, the avalanche method may represent significant savings over the snowball method. For others, it's not a big difference.  But unless you run the numbers, you won't know that and you may leave money on the table by choosing the method that "feels right," rather than the one that will get you out of debt fastest.

Another tip: combine this approach with consolidation for maximum savings.

[Related Article: 3 People Who Dug Out of Deep Debt]

Consolidation
If you are able to consolidate your debts, you will get a new loan to pay off other debts. Then you will pay off the new loan as quickly as possible. You may be able to consolidate with a personal loan or by using balance transfers to low-rate or 0% credit cards. The danger? The new loan will make you feel like you solved the problem, and soon you'll be pulling out the plastic again.

Consolidation can work for you if: You are able to significantly reduce your interest rates, and are able to pay off the new debt in roughly three years or less.

To make it work: Combine consolidation with a DIY debt reduction plan. Put your credit cards somewhere that they won't be easy to get to, so you won't be tempted to run up new debt while you're still paying off this loan.

Credit counseling
A reputable credit counseling organization will typically review your budget with you for free, and help you figure out if a debt-management plan can help you get out of debt faster. If you enroll in a DMP, your credit card issuers will typically reduce your interest rates, and you'll make one monthly payment to the counseling agency, which will then pay each of your creditors. According to the most recent Transparency Project report from Cambridge Credit Counseling, clients received interest rate reductions averaging 14.49%. As a result, the average new client's payment was $141.58 less than what they had been paying on their own.

A debt-management plan may work for you if: Your creditors lower your interest rates enough to provide breathing room in your budget, and you have enough income and cash flow to pay back your debts in five years or less.

To make it work: Be realistic about your ability to make the payments required under the DMP for as long as it will take you to pay off your balances. Take advantage of the education and support programs offered by the counseling agency, and reach out to them immediately if you experience an unexpected financial setback.

[Related Article: How Do Debt Relief Options Affect Your Credit?]

Debt settlement
If your balances are too high to pay them back within five years, or if you're dealing with significant debt that's been turned over to collections, you may want to consider trying to negotiate settlements with your creditors. With this approach, the creditor or collector agrees to accept less than the full balance to satisfy the debt.

Debt settlement may work for you if: You are able to come up with the enough money — typically around 30%-50% of what you owe — to settle your debts in a relatively short period of time (usually 24 months or less). The funds to settle may come from savings or a gift from a family member, for example.

To make it work: Educate yourself on how settlement works. You may have a stressful few months as you try to negotiate with the companies to whom you owe money. Before you go this route, it's a good idea to also talk with a bankruptcy attorney to find out whether that might be a better option. Also make sure you investigate upfront whether you will owe taxes on canceled debt.

Bankruptcy
If you file for bankruptcy, you may be able to eliminate most or all of your debts very quickly (in a Chapter 7 Plan) or over five years or less (in a Chapter 13 Plan). If you are being threatened with debt collection lawsuits, if your income has been to reduced to the point where you can't make your payments, or if you are simply feeling overwhelmed with your debt, it's a good idea to talk with a bankruptcy attorney to find out whether it may provide the relief you need.

Bankruptcy may work for you if: You have significant debts that can be discharged (eliminated), and your income does not prevent you from doing that.

To make it work: Talk with a qualified bankruptcy attorney, one whose practice is largely devoted to bankruptcy and helping consumers in debt. Ask for referrals from financial professionals you trust, or visit NACBA.org. When you do meet with an attorney, bring all the documentation he or she instructs you to bring, and be completely honest about your situation. And don't wait until you've been sued or you raided your retirement accounts to talk to an attorney.

More from Credit.com

• 4 Ways to Avoid the Holiday Credit Hangover
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More Americans are feeling unsure of your financial security but it’s not because of the tough job market.

It's all about those skimpy paychecks.

Stagnant wages for the majority of U.S. households have more consumers curbing their spending and worried about paying down debt, according to a Bankrate.com survey released Wednesday. Inflation-adjusted median family income has declined about 6 percent since it peaked at around $64,000 in 2000.

Bankrate.com’s Financial Security Index looks at job security, savings, debt, net worth and the overall financial situation of consumers; this month the index hit its lowest level since March and experienced its biggest monthly drop since last August. About 1,000 adults were polled via telephone interviews done nationally earlier this month.

Even with the unemployment rate still above 8 percent, surprisingly job security was the least affected part of the index. Most of those polled feel that the jobs outlook was the most improved component this year.

“What's really undermining consumer progress on financial security are stagnant wages,” said Greg McBride, Bankrate’s senior financial analyst. “If incomes aren’t growing it’s difficult for people to make headway on debt and savings.”

Indeed, the U.S. Commerce Department reported in June that consumer spending was unchanged and wages were essentially flat in May. 

Uncertainty over what many have called the “fiscal cliff” is keeping many businesses from hiring, expanding and making big investments, McBride explained. The cliff is referring to $600 billion worth of tax hikes and spending cuts that could automatically kick in January if Congress doesn’t find a compromise. Some economists have warned that it could push the U.S. economy into reverse. 

Bottom line, McBride added, “The economy is still stuck in first gear.”

David Bach

It’s great when you’re significant other keeps you on the road to financial well-being, but what if your better half is also a fiscal train wreck, or they're just not on the same page as you when it comes to money management?

The first step in dealing with the problem is admitting you and your lover have a problem, said David Bach, a personal finance expert and author of numerous money management books including “Debt Free For Life: The Finish Rich Plan for Financial Freedom.”

Bach was on hand Wednesday to answer relationship money questions from readers during our weekly live web chat that included a host of inquiries on how couples can put their financial houses in order.

The key, Bach maintained, is being honest about financial challenges and getting both members of a couple to do their part.

Clearly, it’s a challenge. According to a Today.com and SELF magazine survey released earlier this year, nearly half of respondents admitted to keeping financial secrets from their partners.

Of those who kept secrets, about 34 percent said it was because they disagreed with their significant other about where to spend the money.

One reader who joined the web chat was able to put all his and his wife’s financial cards on the table.

G. Money asked Bach:

“My wife and I have been married for 15 years. We both are spenders. We have accumulated a lot of debt. We have about a $110,000 mortgage, $35,000 2nd mortgage, $12,000 personal loan and $10,000 in credit card debt. How do we tackle this debt? Also, how do we change our bad spending habits?”

Bach’s reply:

“All financial progress begins with telling the truth and you just did that, so well done. I think you need credit counseling. I would go to www.debtadvice.org, and get a referral to a non-profit credit counselor to review what you bad habits are and what you can do to change your behavior. Also go to the library and get Debt Free For Life, my new book and simply work the plan I lay out, it can help you get on the right track to crush your debt and change your life. Good luck to you! You can do this, and you can change.”

For those individuals who have a spouse who’s the opposite of them when it comes to personal finance, one of you may need an education in dollars and sense, advised Bach.

Khang asked:

“She wants a joint bank account; I don't. She's a spender, I'm the saver. Can you help me resolve conflict with my future wife?”

Bach wrote:

“Khang, welcome to marriage...lol. The truth is we almost always marry our financial opposite. Check out my book "Smart Couples Finish Rich." In this book I teach couples to first work on discovering their core values, and planning their dreams together. Then I turn to your finances. The best place to start is on organizing your financial documents at home with my Finish Rich File Folder System. You can actually find this on my website also at www.finishrich.com. Next you should work on finding your couples Latte Factor, where you spend small amounts of money on little things that you can both give up. And then it's time to work on a 'pay yourself first plan', where you agree to set aside a fixed percentage of your income off the top of your income before you spend anything. Lot's to consider, but trust me you really can do this--and being on the same page with your money will change your life! Good luck to you!”

Here’s a transcript to the entire Q&A with Bach:

It’s no secret that many Americans have long relied on credit cards and other forms of debt to get what we want, or what we need.

But a new survey finds that even in the wake of the Great Recession, we may not be totally honest with ourselves about whether we are living beyond our means.

The survey of about 3,000 Americans finds that about half of the respondents spend more than they earn at least a few months out of the year.

Yet only about 1 in 10 respondents said their current lifestyle is more than they can afford. The vast majority said their lifestyle is about what they can afford.

The survey was conducted by Rasmussen Reports on behalf of Country Financial as part of the company’s monthly measure of financial security.

Of the people who spend more than they earn at least some of the time, about 36 percent said the primary response is to dip into savings to meet their financial obligations. About 22 percent said they use credit cards to cover the gap, while 12 percent delayed paying the bills.

The good news is that half the people surveyed – 46 percent – rarely or never spend more than they earn in a given month.

The difficult economy has had a devastating impact on many Americans' finances, and that has forced some to rely more on credit cards and other forms of borrowing because they don’t have the money to meet monthly expenses.

For many the recession and recovery served as a wake-up call to pare back on credit card debt and get their finances under control.

Recently, however, there have been signs that people are feeling more comfortable again about taking on debt. The Federal Reserve said last week that Americans increased borrowing in March for things like cars and education, and also used their credit cards more.

Americans also may be living beyond their means because they have less money than they used to. The nation’s median household income has fallen by about 7 percent from its peak in 1999 after adjusting for inflation.

Related:

One in four Americans has more debt than savings

The financial shocks that began in 2007 prompted a lot of Americans to change their free-spending ways, especially when it came to taking on debt.

Several years on, some Americans may be reversing course, either by choice or necessity.

The Federal Reserve said Monday that Americans sharply increased their borrowing for big-ticket items like cars and education expenses in March and whipped out their credit cards more often.

Experts say the surprising increase of more than $21 billion in consumer borrowing may be a sign that Americans are feeling more comfortable taking on debt again. Or it could be that many are running out of other options.

With the economy still relatively weak, many say it’s doubtful that Americans have forgotten the harsh impact of the recession, financial crisis and credit crunch.

“I would hope that we as consumers have learned our lesson from the economic downturn that hey, we’ve got to watch our spending and spend what we can afford,” said Bill Hardekopf, CEO of lowcards.com, a credit card comparison website. “I would think a great number of people did learn that.”

But even with those lessons in mind, some Americans may feel they have to borrow money.

Paul Edelstein, director of financial economics with IHS Global Insight, said consumers may be taking out car loans because, after years of scrimping and putting off major expenses, they have little choice.

“People are in a position where they have to buy new cars,” Edelstein said.

Are you at risk of losing unemployment benefits?

Americans also may be rushing to take on student loan debt because they’re worried about a potential increase in the borrowing rate, he said. The interest rate on certain student loans could increase to 6.8 percent in July, from 3.4 percent currently, if Congress doesn’t take action.

It’s also possible that students are taking on new student loans faster than the old ones are being paid off thanks to the weak job market, said Alex Matjanec, co-founder of MyBankTracker.com, which provides information about banks, loans and credit cards.

Revolving debt – which is largely composed of credit card debt – accounted for about $5 billion of the increase in March. Still, total credit card debt is much lower than five years ago, before the recession, housing crisis and credit crunch changed people’s habits significantly.

Hardekopf said part of the reason for the March increase could be an aggressive push by banks to get people with good credit to use their cards more. He said banks have been pushing better incentives and rewards, although interest rates have not changed much.

Hardekopf also has seen an increase in credit card offers to higher-risk borrowers with lower credit scores. After years of tight credit they may be getting tempted by the more aggressive offers, he said.

Edelstein said he doubts people will go back to the free-spending, pre-recession days.

One big reason: Housing wealth, or a lack thereof. Before the housing bubble burst many Americans enjoyed the security of having a lot of equity in their homes. These days, with so many homes underwater, people are more likely to have to rely on their paycheck.

“You don’t have that cushion,” he said.

Photo courtesy Frank Ferko

Sister Mary Joseph of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, left, and aspiring nun Nicole Ferko.

Nicole Ferko’s $60,000 in student loans made her put off her dream of becoming a nun for a decade.

Ferko, who lives in Grand Prairie, Texas, graduated from a private Ohio Catholic university in 2002 and walked away with a huge loan burden.

“I knew I wanted to give my life to God, but I expected after college I’d go right in and work toward becoming a sister,” she said. But she discovered that individuals looking to become priests or nuns need to be debt free.

It took her until late last year to pay off her loans because she was unable to find many good-paying jobs and ended up racking up $20,000 in credit card debt. With the loans and credit cards paid off, Ferko, 32, is now on track to become a sister with The Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, but she won’t reach her ultimate goal of donning a nun's habit until she’s 39 because the process takes that long.

“I thought I’d be a sister by almost 30 -- not almost 40,” she said. “If I had to do it all over again, I would have been smarter to have saved a lot more money.”

Hefty student loan debt is hampering the career dreams of many graduates whether they’re looking to enter religious vocations or work for corporate America. And with the rising cost of college tuition and increases in student loan default rates, the problem of graduates saddled with debt and unable to fulfill their work aspirations is expected to get worse.

Indeed, the average student-loan debt for graduates jumped 25 percent from 2000 to 2010 to nearly $17,000 in inflation-adjusted dollars, while average wages for workers 25 to 34 with bachelor's degrees dropped by 15 percent over the same time period, according to the Progressive Policy Institute.

Many students can’t afford to go into work that doesn’t pay well because sometimes they have hundreds, even thousands of dollars in monthly loan payments. Others who want jobs in offices or factories are being turned away because they have developed bad credit histories due to their student-loan debt, said Steven Rothberg, founder of CollegeRecruiter.com, which helps connect students and recent graduates with entry-level jobs.

In some cases where students have federally subsidized loans, Rothberg said, it’s better not to even take a low-paying job, because if you’re unemployed you don’t have to make loan payments.

A large number of corporations now do credit background checks on job candidates, and that spells trouble for graduates who have been late or have defaulted on their student loans. 

According to a Department of Education report released late last year, student loan defaults are on the rise, increasing to 8.8 percent in fiscal year 2009, up from 7 percent the previous year. And 27 percent of student-loan borrowers are more than 30 days past due on payment, according to a recent report by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

And with more employers relying on credit checks, that's bad news for grads looking for work.

“An employer may not appreciate that a student loan was the cause of that, and even if they do they still may be very concerned about hiring somebody who is messed up financially,” said Rothberg.

Credit background checks -- now used by 13 percent of employers for all job candidates and 47 percent of the time for certain jobs, such as in financial services, according to the Society of Human Resource Management -- have come under fire in recent years because they may run afoul of the nation’s labor laws by impacting minority candidates disproportionately. Some states have moved to ban credit reviews for job candidates, but for now it’s an issue job seekers with credit problems must deal with.

When it comes to vocations within certain Christian orders, the issue of student loan debt, or any debt, won’t be going anywhere because it’s part of religious law, said Brother Paul Bednarczyk, executive director of the Chicago-based National Religious Vocation Conference, which commissioned a study that looked at the issue of debt-laden students looking to go into religious life.

The study by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University, released this year, found 69 percent of religious orders “turned away at least one person because of student loans. In addition, many religious communities ask young people to delay their applications to enter because of educational debt.”

With tuition rising at a rate of 5 percent annually, Bednarczyk said, “the problem will only get worse in the future.”

As a result of the report, he said, his group is putting together guidelines to deal with candidates with debt. In some cases, religious orders have paid off applicant student debt but it’s becoming more financially stressful for these communities to pick up the tab, he explained.

“Since 1978, college tuition has increased by 900 percent,” he noted. “The president is trying to pass legislation to assist with that but that applies to people in college today -- not graduates.”

He referred to legislation that would keep interest rates from doubling to 6.8 percent on certain subsidized student loans. 

At a time when the nation needs more individuals entering religious vocations, Bednarczyk said: “We have to turn people away because they’re too poor to take the vow of poverty.”  

When you think of student loans, you think of students and recent graduates -- younger people in their 20s and 30s working to pay off the thousands of dollars in debt from undergraduate and graduate schools.

It's a good bet you don't think of people in their 60s, 70s and even 80s struggling to pay off student debt. But new research shows that Americans 60 and older owe $36 billion in educational debt and account for 5 percent of delinquent student loans.

In some cases, the debt was incurred when adults went back to school later in life. In other cases the debt resulted from co-signed loans taken out by children.

Washington Post reporter Ylan Q. Mui, wrote about the research in The Washington Post and appeared on CNBC to discuss the trend:

Many U.S. consumers are so deep in a financial hole that even as the economy begins to turn around they can’t quite dig themselves out.

A survey by Bankrate.com released Tuesday found that 25 percent of Americans have more credit card debt than they have in emergency savings, and that spells trouble if an emergency situation actually hits.

Consumers are doing better when it comes to living within their means, said Greg McBride, Bankrate.com’s senior financial analyst. But, he added, years of stagnant wage growth, high unemployment, declining home values and escalating household expenses have strained wallets. “Even though there’s been progress things are still out of whack,” he said.

And the economic pictures may get even gloomier for consumers if gas prices continue to escalate, he pointed out. Last year, he said, “60 percent of Americans said they cut back on discretionary spending because of gasoline prices.”

Those hit hardest when it comes to debt versus savings, are individuals on the low end of the economic ladder and those with less education, according to the study that polled more than 1000 adults earlier this month.

Here are some of the findings:

• 70 percent of those earning $75,000-plus have more in savings than credit card debt vs. 40 percent of those earning less than $30,000 per year.
• 64 percent of college grads have more in savings than in credit card debt vs. 46 percent with a high school education or less.
• 27 percent of Americans report a lower level of financial security now versus one year ago and 24 percent report a higher level.
• 38 percent of Americans are less comfortable with their savings now compared with one year ago; only 14 percent are more comfortable.

The overall percentage of consumers who have more emergency savings than credit card debt actually inched up to 54 percent of those polled, compared to 52 percent in the same month last year. But that doesn’t mean people are necessarily more debt adverse.

“They can’t go spend money they don’t have,” McBride explained, because credit is so tight today, particularly when it comes to consumers who don’t have the best credit ratings.

A bad credit rating can also create a double whammy for those people looking for jobs because some employers now use credit reports when evaluating job candidates. That’s even worse news for individuals trying to pay off debt.

High amounts of debt and thin savings have become a fixture in U.S. society. “Over the years, the savings’ needle hasn’t moved,” he said. “From 2007 and 2011, the percentage of Americans with three months worth of expenses in savings, which is not adequate, is unchanged.”

It’s something we may be used to, he maintained, but “it’s not a recipe for people having a warm and fuzzy feeling about their financial situation.”

AP file

The holidays are over, but chances are there’s still one thing left to open: That credit card statement.

For many people, January can be a tough month, financially, because people are working to pay off the debt they accumulated over the holidays, or start saving for the next big splurge.

It’s also a time when many people vow to make better financial decisions in the new year.

The National Endowment for Financial Education, a nonprofit devoted to personal finance, has posted a list of tips for starting off the new year on good financial footing.

Our favorite: Assess your debt.

The first step to paying down your credit card debt is figuring out how much money you actually owe. That will help you set realistic spending and saving goals.

Another good one: Pick just one item to cut out of your budget to save money. Temporarily giving up that trip to the coffee shop or dinner out is a simple way to save money without changing your life all that much.

Click here for the full list of tips, and share your best simple money-saving tips in the comments section below.

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Moody's Analytics

Everyone knows that the cost of health care has become a bigger and bigger burden in recent years, but even that pales in comparison to another skyrocketing cost: College.

The folks at Moody’s Analytics crunched some government numbers and found that the cost of tuition and fees has more than doubled since 2000. That’s a bigger percentage increase than, well, pretty much anything else.

Given a chart like this, it’s no wonder we view college as overpriced and unaffordable – but still worth it for the professional and other advantages.

Still, there is a downside to such a pricey education: Debt. The Moody’s paper notes that student loan balances also have risen steadily in recent years, leaving many students starting out their careers with a hefty chunk of money to pay off.

Msnbc.com’s John Schoen joined us for a live Web chat Wednesday to answer your questions about the debt ceiling.

Here’s one of John’s answers to questions from the live chat. (See below for the full Q&A.)

Mike asked:

“Aren't we really painted into a corner that will take a while to extract ourselves from? Interest rates can't go any lower, stimulus cause debt bloat and uncertainty, and tax cuts only increase debt from the revenue side. Are there any tools left to be brought to bear?”

John replied:

“That's exactly why the outlook is troubling right now. The time to balance the budget is when the economy is booming. (The same holds for consumers too, by the way.) But the borrowing of the last decade now has to be paid back. That's going to be painful - no matter how Congress goes about it. We've also seen a massive stimulus from the Federal Reserve - which recently ended its latest round of bond buying to keep interest rates low. There's talk that the Fed may come back with another round, but it's not at all clear how much good it would do.”

Here’s the full chat archive:

For more analysis on the debt ceiling, check out John’s recent story on the topic: After debt deal, economy in deeper peril

If you have a question for our TODAY Money experts, submit it here.

To sign up for an e-mail reminder for our next chat, click here.