<p>Husband didn't know I had 20K in loans when we married. He might have run the other way. The majority of the debt was from pharmacy school even with two jobs. I owed 20k when I graduated and had to consolidate and extend to 20 yrs. I was making 30K and my loans before consolidation were $600+/month. I had moved back with my parents, my car was falling apart, I needed psychotherapy and I was poor. My mother demanded $500 a month to live at home. I found myself an apartment for $400, got away from the mother and no longer required the Beverly Hills therapist. I remember getting tired of writing checks every month and just payed off the debt with some saving sometime before the son was in high school. The final check was a lot less than son's tuition now. We are so grateful that son does not have loans hanging over his head. I had a male friend who told me I would have been better off saving the $75/wk therapist money, driving the junker and putting it towards a house-too bad I didn't listen.</p>