She could have stayed at the lucrative Manhattan law firm where she was making enough to cover her loan obligations. I get that it's rough on the kids, but that was a decision she made, and tons of other people make that situation work.
So, although unlikely, she may have based her decision on the possibility that, worse case scenario, she could have declared bankruptcy.
Now the $20,000 personal loan for living expenses, I assume would still be dischargeable in bankruptcy.
Which made sense at the time, since it was being subsidized.
Not entirely true.
I'm not sure what her options are to never pay off the debt.
She can always just stop paying, and try to call the lender's bluff and force them to go through court to garnish her wages.
Genuine request: Can you please elaborate.