ABSTRACT This research aims to show the cognitive constraints experienced by resulting from financial concerns and problems. A case study was conducted involving eight individuals living in different Colombian cities, who got into debt and faced an insolvency process. The results obtained are consistent with the theoretical-empirical framework proposed by Mullainathan and Shafir (2013), regarding the cognitive strain experienced by individuals with feeling of scarcity. This work contributes to the existing empirical literature and represents a first step toward the existence of a debt illiquidity trap that drives debtors to perpetuate their critical financial situation.