I hear exactly the same. "I didn't realise there was any other way of doing it" is another lament when they come in, cosplaying an airline pilot, with a worthless resume...
Such a huge investment and 50% of it could have been used to get some valuable command hours day and night. One of my instructors is also a financial advisor and strongly advises against it, yet they take the word of completely unqualified sales people instead and get themselves into terrible financial strife.