Now that Christmas is over, you may be assessing the damage done to your bank account. According to finance experts, the amount spent online shopping increased this year by more than 20-percent.

In light of the pandemic, that may not come as a surprise, but online shopping can easily lead to overspending.

"Online shopping just blew up," said Victor Russell with the non-profit credit counseling organization, Apprisen.

And with that, overspending this holiday season doesn't come as a surprise.

"It's not hard to pour maybe an extra glass of wine and all of a sudden you are shopping for things you didn't think you were going to be shopping for," said Russell.

But now, if you're assessing that credit card damage, it's time to face reality.

"You really have to have a strategy, you have to cut back on spending right away, stop the bleeding," advised Russell, who also notes that just $1,000 in debt with minimum payments and you could still be paying off this 2020 Christmas in 2025.

"The other thing is, start planning for next year. If you save a small about $50 a month right now, you'll have 600 dollars saved up by next Christmas season," said Russell.

And if you're considering using stimulus money to pay off debt, it's not a bad idea.
But, Russell said the need for that money should be assessed and used for essentials or saved as a life line if money is tight.