What does filing bankruptcy do to your credit report?

A non professional gave me the advice of filing bankruptcy for debt i have totaling $5000. His argument was that with these debts that i have are obliterating my credit score anyway and that bankruptcy wouldnt be any worse. Is this true? What does filing bankruptcy do to your credit report and would it damage it more or less than leaving these debts sit as i do not have the money to pay them off at the moment. Thank you for reading and any help.