"A Restaurant Bankruptcy"

I found that after being in business for 7 years, that I was going down with the ship. I was so stressed, very depressed, and my health suffered. I was having ulcers and migraines frequently, and even my marriage was on the rocks.

I owned a restaurant in the Bay area and after the first couple years of breaking even, I finally made some profit. Next thing I know I'm taking out a loan to improve operations and the deal went south. I was trying to maximize efficiency in the kitchen by updating some technology that when purchased initially was not state of the art.

After having spent thousands I thought that with steady sales and a more efficient workplace I would benefit from the transaction. But I pretty much hanged myself. The competition grew tighter, and so did my wallet.

My wife advised to get out while I could but I had the glorious thought that the restaurant was a part of me and I needed it, when in retrospect I should have behaved as though it were an asset, and only an asset.

I was reluctant to consider bankruptcy because I thought I would be considered a failure, and that only added to my burden.

Eventually, I had no choice but to seek legal counsel, and after taking this step, I finally decided to file a Chapter 7.

A trustee was appointed to sell the assets I had left with the proceeds going to the people I owed money to, including friends and family who had helped me in those jams that I couldn't get myself out of.

After filing bankruptcy, my stress, depression, sickness all went away and my marriage improved immediately. Now that huge burden that I thought was bankruptcy turned out to be a relief in a time of need.

Contributed by Roger from California