<prompt> Human: Can I tell you a story? My credit score now sits at a 614. It used to be in the 400s. All throughout my life I was a mamas boy. Everything she said, I believed and adhered too. And I would do anything to help out my parents. We had it rough. We were poor and who wouldnt love to help their parents? Including letting her use my SSN to open an account for the family. It was always the same spiel. HeyItsRed dad and I cant open a generic account because we owe them money. Can we use your name? Sure mommy note- most times she never asked. Dont get me wrong, I now see how stupid I was. This happened with or without my knowledge several times, spanning several different types of accounts cell phones, tv, utilities, rent, etc. I had no earthly idea about this sub or other people like me and their struggles. My mothers actions have landed her in jail on more than one occasion. Each time she got out I was there for her. Until I turned 18 and the creditors swarmed in, and the court cases were filed against me from bad checks she wrote with my checkbook, unbeknownst to me. I lost my car, I had to drop out of school community college, I lost my job bad checks written in my name to the retailer - fire able offense. I loathed her. I wanted to know how she could do something to her own child like that. But now I know she has done it to everyone. Shes sick and so I amputated our relationship. I ignored these offenses, foolishly, until I was 22. I started to get bills in the 1000s of dollars from debt collectors. I had to do something. This was my future she could have ruined. I contacted a detective from back home and filed a police report. It was long. This man was was so patient with me while I collected all necessary information. One by one he got charges and creditors off my back. When the detective had gone to speak to her, she denied everything. I was furious. This was her moment to take responsibility. Alas, she hadnt changed. The detective was able to show that I had opened none of the accounts but no charges were brought against her, because I couldnt show that it was her. Just that it wasnt me. Now Im a junior at a good university. I paid off my car. I have a credit card haha a big deal for me. Most importantly, I pay all my bills off on time. I know some of you may not want to file charges but its necessary. If you ignore this, It will haunt you. It will take time. But it is all necessary. The longer you wait the worst itll be.Tl;Dr My mother use my info to open accounts and ruin my credit. I filed a police report and got it all removed. I also never spoke to her again.Edit: Ive been working all night and oh my god this has blown up. Reading all these has been inspirational. I will attempt to read and respond to every person I can. You guys are awesome and I love this sub. I couldnt possibly be happier with this post. Also thanks to the bloke who gave me gold! I dont really know what to do with it.  <response>: I was in a similar situation. I grew up horribly poor, but I did well in school and got a scholarship that paid for a big chunk of college. Tuition was still going to be a few thousand a semester, but my dad said hed be able to make the payments. Instead, he let the bills pile up, then opened several credit cards and other loans in my name. I found out when I was unable to start my final year because of a delinquent balance. So I had to leave school, but I couldnt get an apartment so I moved in with my mom. Shortly after moving in with her I got hit with a court summons from the university for another delinquent account as well as creditors from the loans and credit cards that had been opened in my name.Facing a mountain of debt with horrible credit and no way to set out on my own, I got a shitty job at a truck stop working overnights for a month before lucking into a helpdesk job. I spent the next two years working my ass off and paying nearly every dime to creditors and debt collectors. Its now a decade later. I work as a senior systems engineer and I have a mortgage and a nice car. I still dont have a degree, but Im paying off the mountain of college loans I ended up with. In the end it all worked out, but for a few years I was seriously underwater.Its hard enough to get a good start in this world when you grow up poor, but when parents do shit like this it just makes the cycle perpetuate itself. I feel lucky every day that I somehow managed to escape. 