Ok i think i got it. Thank you so much for explaining !!! It helped a lot.

And Jamie...I will use all cards Every month leaving a small balance on them around 5% (less? More?) until when? January? Then pay them all down to report zero except one ?

Is that right? I'm assuming for Christmas I will have a slightly higher utilization than 1% anyway...but I will let the balances carry over if you're suggesting it will help my chances of getting approved for care credit in late Feb/early March.

I really appreciate everyone breaking this down for me. Man is it confusing lol!