Please reply I need advice

A question about : Please reply I need advice

Hello,
I wrote on this forum and did not receive any replies or advice. Please see below

I am writing in relation to an old debt that I did not have a clue I had and now received a letter from the debt owner (an old mobile phone provider.) threatening to send my unpaid debt to a collection agency, Lovell??) I completely forgot about this debt, but the details are below:

The beginning of 2012 I was diagnosed with an illness. I have suffered from this illness for several years before being correctly diagnosed and had always had a problem managing money due to my illness. At times I could do everything and didn't think of the consequences then boom I would go crashing down to an anxious depressed state for months. Due to being incapacitated badly during my episodes, I realised that I had been in denial for several years and was probably going to suffer from this for the rest of my life (a sobering thought, but nethertheless, a reality check.) I live with my parents due to my disability as, right now, I am not able to fend for myself (heart breaking as I am a 36 year old female who was bright and independent woman in her younger years now facing the fact i will never have children, which is depressing in itself coupled with the embarrassment of being dependant on my poor parents). I had to deal with my debt problems because there was no way I would be able to ever pay these people back on the monies I receive which i pay my parents to keep me housed, the benefits system expect me on my low benefits to pay for my keep without any housing benefit or additional help. I am advised to socialise and so on but with no money how an earth am i supposed to do that!?) So, I went to seek advice from step change and it was advised that i should take a DRO out, which I did. This ended in 2013 and I was debt free, or so I thought. Out of the blue three years later, I receive a letter from 3G stating that I have an outstanding amount for a phone contract I had but did not pay the rest of the contracted amount and stopped using my phone.) I could not afford to pay the phone bill each month and as such asked them to cancel the contract and then switched the phone off and left it at that.) I still have the phone! They are asking for 300.00 odd and there is no way I can afford to pay this on the little I get each month. I have not responded as wanted to seek advice and it will take me an age to pay this back as I don't have anything spare to give them. What can I do? I suffer from a long term illness and I am unable to pay this back. I do hope that you don't judge me on here for having bipolar. I was a 'top class' citizen with a budding career before this incideous illness grabbed me and it has effectively led to untold stress, strife and misery for some large chunks of my adult hood. I don't need this worry of a relatively small debt to hinder my recovery which is ongoing and I also don't need them to be pestering the lives out of my elderly parents.

Thank you for taking the time to read this extremely long email (a bit cathartic!)

Any advice is much appreciated and please reply as I am now developing a complex that if I so much as mention I suffer from a type of depression people head for the hills. I have already lost a lot of friends (in fact all of them.) which doesn't really bode well for the rest of society in judging someone like me. Its more common than we think. I just hope I haven't stumbled across a forum that doesn't want to give advice to someone like me?

Best answers:

• Hi - ok, so what I think you are saying is: You had a DRO that ended in 2013 but a mobile phone provider is saying that you owe them for the remaining part of the contract.
  I don't have much knowledge of a DRO but there are other posters on here who might be able to help more than I can. However, I would have thought that the DRO ended the phone contract. Was a debt to the mobile phone provider included in your DRO?
• Sorry don't know much about DRO's - you may be better reposting on the sub board for IVA & DROs link here.
• I know this has been difficult for you but try and keep your questions concise and hopefully you will get more replies
• Deleted as question answered in duplicate thread.
  just also to say that a lot of people have debt issues due to a myriad of reasons. Never seen anyone not answered due to being bipolar.