**If anyone wants to know the problem that is federal student loan debt (especially with it being in the news lately), let me tell you my story…**

**When a court paused payments under the SAVE plan in 2025, I voluntarily changed payment plans so I could make payments to count towards my public service loan forgiveness timeline given that I work for a nonprofit instead of having months on end of no payments due. I was put on the PAYE plan with an updated, and increased, monthly payment of $1,200. Six months later they randomly denied me the PAYE plan (after being approved and paying on it for 6 months) and now my monthly payment is $2,400 even though my income only increased 2%.** 

**But that’s not the worst of it. As you see from this photo, I have been paying on my student loans for FOURTEEN YEARS and my balance has gone UP almost $110,000.** 

**Look, yes I’m bitter than I worked for a nonprofit for almost 10 years making crap money but it didn’t count towards public service loan forgiveness because it was a union (even though anti-union nonprofits count) despite the fact that the entire point was to encourage people to go into low paying nonprofit/government jobs. And yes I know I took these loans out.** 

**But 7-9% interest from the feds? My loans going UP $100,000+ despite payments? The governments constant change of student loan programs and terms and rules?**

**If it’s literally not possible to pay off these loans how are they not predatory?**

Did you know it’s possible pay on your federal student loans and have them go up $100K+