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Are there any idioms, slang or informal expressions for a bad situation that causes trouble for a person and seems impossible to get out of.

An example:
A guy lost a smartphone with a ton of personal information on it, in a public place. The smartphone had his logins, passwords, credit card info, personal porn and selfies. It is unlikely that he will get it back.

That poor guy is ______
(or)
That situation is like _____

I am looking for idioms to describe the situation when someone is in deep trouble and unable to fix it.

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    This is too broad. There are dozens of possibilities.
    – Chenmunka
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 15:25
  • Disaster has to be the condition followed by any of a 1000 curses. Unless you live in France, digital files are forever.
    – user116032
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 15:59
  • Maybe "Catch-22," "Double bind," "Between a rock and a hard place" (or, more archaically, "Between Scylla and Charybdis")
    – SAH
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 16:24
  • "To be in a mess", "To be screwed" or "when you find yourself in deep shit, there's nothing to chirp about".
    – Graffito
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 16:31
  • @Chenmunka What exactly is too broad for you? Possibilities? Which possibilities? Someone is in a bad situation and unable to fix it. The example was given in the question. Isn't it clear enough?
    – user128024
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 16:49

3 Answers 3

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One that I use is "up a creek without a paddle". It implies being at the mercy of whatever the creek may bring to you, whether it be the shore, rapids, or being dumped out of the boat entirely.

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    An off-color variant is "up shit creek" or even "up shit creek without a paddle"
    – DyingIsFun
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 15:17
  • This is exactly what I am looking for. Thanks. @Silenus
    – user128024
    Commented Sep 9, 2015 at 16:46
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Sounds like that fellow is in a pickle.

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EDIT - The question has been edited and now I would like to suggest "in a stew".

If someone is in a stew, that ​person is in a ​difficult ​situation that ​causes them to ​feel ​worried or ​upset. CDO

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