For millions of Americans who can’t stop thinking about their rising debt, dreaming it away is not an option. “A lot of debt can make it harder for people to sleep,” Corey Backes, a director and an ex-counselor at the Debt Counseling Corp. in Hauppauge, said yesterday.

They also get sick, according to the results of a new Associated Press-AOL Health poll. Respondents revealed that stress created from rising debt brought on neck pain and headaches, ulcers, severe depression and even heart attacks.

Dr. Elizabeth Carll, a clinical psychologist and author in Huntington, said the results are not surprising. She’s noticing more health-related issues in people whose businesses go under. “They might feel severe anxiety or find they are having panic attacks or bouts of depression,” she said. “Once the business has deteriorated, debt increases; and from that comes great stress.”

The study was conducted March 24-April 3 with 1,002 adults in all states except Alaska and Hawaii. The margin of error was plus or minus 3.1 percentage points. Among respondents:

27 percent had ulcers or digestive tract problems, compared with 8 percent of those with low levels of debt stress.

23 percent had severe depression, compared with 4 percent with low debt stress. (continue)