Hi Glenda!
I actually answered this for a friend of mine a while back. I used to do corporate bankruptcy consulting, and I have heard this question over and over again. There is no one size fits all answer. But, if the situation is dire enough, debt consolidation isn't a horrible option.
Take a look at the attached article – it’s pretty basic, but it’s a good overview, especially with regard to when to look to debt consolidation and when not to.
The National Foundation for Credit Counseling is a good advocate, and they do a very, very good job of identifying good, reliable counseling agencies. You can do a quick search on Welcome to NFCC! of agencies based your zip code.
Another thing to note, the bankruptcy code was amended in 1996 to include certain provisions for consumer counseling. The attached article (which I’m guessing precedes that amendment) doesn’t address one of the key points which is that the Dept of Justice now has an “approved list” of consumer counseling agencies. You can find a link to the approved agencies here: U.S. Trustee Program/Dept. of Justice.
I don't like this list as much, because the criteria that they use to select their agencies is more of a tick box approach - if the agencies meet the stated requirements, they are approved. The NFCC is better. But, if you can find a counselor in your area that is on both lists, it's a good start.
Hope that helps!!
Article on Consumer Credit Counseling.pdf