Congrats, and I know the work it took to get there. My wife and I were both a hot mess financially after our divorces, but in the 10 years we've been married we've gone from around $40k in debt to right at $600k in net worth pretty easily. We have managed to still enjoy ourselves by taking vacations, occasionally eating out, etc. Life is good with a great partner.
Thanks for your posts and stories, @ScoreUpScaleDown74 and @LakeLife. Sharing our journeys and how we overcame financial challenges is important and can give hope and inspiration to some of our members who are struggling.
My story is similar. I've written before on the forums about how I faced a unexpected, serious mid-life career crisis that led to major disruptions to my finances. This occurred at a time in my life when I was primary breadwinner for a family of five, and didn't end until they were all through college and out of the nest. From the time it all began until I saw my way out of the crisis was about twenty years in total, about 1995 to 2015. Like you, the large five-figure debts we rolled around were not due to frivolous spending. And like you, what ultimately helped me to break free was "catching some breaks." In the meanwhile, I spent a lot of years treading water and making relatively slow progress. I'm blessed, though, that I was able to avoid bankruptcy, tapping into my retirement savings, or getting debt mitigation through "credit counseling" services.
Once I turned the corner, my finances took off. I've made huge progress with savings for retirement and paying off debt. Like you, my net worth is consistently into the $1M+ zone, counting my IRA/401K and other assets. I'm still amazed at it and feel incredibly blessed. For others who are reading who feel completely overwhelmed, hang in there. Take it one step at a time, reach out to the community when you need help or encouragement, and remember your long term goal. 
Congrats, OP, and to the others as well on your journies and successes.
I have made a few leaps this past year, racking up debt (small amount was frivoulous) from $0 in CC debt just two years ago. Only slightly stressed, but I try not to look at my scores lol.
I hope the things I've educated myself on pay off and can continue my growth
@302HoneyBadger wrote:
- Doing it alone, and have definitely NOT "caught any breaks." Figured out a long time ago I'm just one of those people who doesn't catch breaks lol.
- ... Some of my "leaps forward" might seem like a "break" to someone on the outside, but ... I did small things to change my overall situation and move closer to my goals.
- ... the self made people I know, I can see that there was no magical "break" - instead it was days, weeks, months, and years of dedication and constantly moving in the direction they wanted, one day at a time, until those things finally accumulated to give them what looks like (to the outsider who refuses to do that kind of work) their big "break(s)."
Congrats on your progress, @302HoneyBadger, and thanks for sharing your story!
I imagine it applies to @ScoreUpScaleDown74 and @LakeLife as well, but what you described is what I meant by "catching a break." It's not so much that I did nothing and then one day someone showed up on my door step with a $10 Million check! 
Sure, there was some fortuitous circumstances in my case, but those were enabled by all the hard work I had done and goals I had set to position myself for success. Perhaps "catching a break" sounds more like completely external factors but it can also be a combination. If you fall into the ocean, you have to keep yourself afloat until you're thrown a life-line, and then you have to reach out to grab hold.
Ya, I think there's this general mentality that "catching a break" would mean things like a great inheritence check showing up (or similar familial assistance that many take for granted like getting a downpayment for a house gifted to them, etc); or landing on a big idea on your first try; or having a powerful/weathy person randomly look over all your hard working coworkers to help you out and advance you beyond what you had earned....or similar types of situations.
This mindset is very prevelent in the circles I grew up in, and once I was away from that, well, confirmation bias is a dangerous thing 
Far too many people see the "big break" and ignore the years that went into it.
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I love the "gumball" analogy where there are hundreds of white gumballs in the machine, a couple dozen orange ones, and a few gold ones. The person who sits there, putting in their "quarters" who doesn't give up is going to eventually get some orange gumballs (advancements; promotions; business idea that generates some meaningful income, etc), and the ones who are at it long enough and stick with it long enough might eventually hit a golden gumball. The rare person will get lucky and get some orange or a gold quickly, but most people with a gumball machine are going to have to go through a LOT of white gumballs to get to the oranges or rare gold one.
Most people aren't willing to sit there that long and stick to it. They'll see the person a few machines over who finally got a couple orange ones, say how lucky they are, and then continue to whine about their 3 white ones, all the while ignoring the pile of white ones the other guy already went through.
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That's why I don't like calling it a break - no one's story here was a "break" (at least not that they talked about) most of them sound like years of working on those goals, and keeping the focus and making it happen.
See, I was raised with this idea that unless you were "lucky" you were destined to be poor, broke, and barely above poverty unless luck deemed you a lucky one - which I am most definitely not. It has taken decades to realize how wrong that thinking was, how much control I actually had, then the things I actually needed to do to take that control, and then actually start on those action steps to change things, then learn how to stick to it even when the going got very, very tough.
It's been life altering once those pieces all came together and I finally could peel off that "luck" filter that I had been so blinded by. Not that I didn't work hard mind you - I was taught to work hard, but was also taught that was all one needed to do. Pay your bills, work hard, and you'll be fine (ya, not so much....but also explains my family's situation(s) lol).
@302HoneyBadger wrote:Ya, I think there's this general mentality that "catching a break" would mean things like a great inheritence check showing up (or similar familial assistance that many take for granted like getting a downpayment for a house gifted to them, etc); or landing on a big idea on your first try; or having a powerful/weathy person randomly look over all your hard working coworkers to help you out and advance you beyond what you had earned....or similar types of situations.
... Far too many people see the "big break" and ignore the years that went into it.
... That's why I don't like calling it a break - no one's story here was a "break" (at least not that they talked about) most of them sound like years of working on those goals, and keeping the focus and making it happen.
I understand, and yes, those things are one definition of "catching a break." I see how you could interpret it that way. But it's not the only definition. It can be getting unearned favorable treatment or it can be pure blind LUCK leading to a change in circumstances. But other meanings point to a successful resolution of an issue without assigning credit directly.
I believe in God working in my life, so I don't presume to take full credit. I did what I could to manage the situation and eventually, there were circumstances that developed that helped me to break free. Did I do it? I persisted, but I don't think I did it alone. So the "catching a break" becomes a blanket term for whatever forces helped to change the situation, whether it was from my own actions, God, or pure blind luck if you choose to call it that.
catch a break
1. To obtain or receive a convenient, beneficial, or lucky opportunity.
2. To receive special treatment or a favorable deal, especially regarding a reduced price on something.
3. To obtain new information leading toward a solution to a given problem.
4. To get relief from some difficulty or problem(s).