Story time: back in 2004-5 I dug myself so deep into debt that I ended up filing for bankruptcy. At the time I was also jobless and had no money in my bank account; I believe I owed the bank money too. This was right before the Bush bankruptcy law changes, so I was able to file for a chapter 7 (released me completely from my debt obligations).
Before I filed I had creditors calling me every day, making all kinds of threats about all of the bad things that would happen to me if I ruined my credit. It scared the shit out of me. I was 27 years old, broke af, lived at home with my parents, and had nothing going for me.
It was amazing how good it felt the moment the court discharged my debt. All of those scary stories about how my life would be over were just that: stories. I started getting offers for mortgages and new cars. I learned my lesson though, so I ignored them. I lived the next 10 years using cash only. Life got so much better too. I wasn’t always stressing about payments, I was able to save up money, and I even moved out of my parent’s house.
TL;DR Ruining your credit is not the end of the world.