I feel for you
Went through this myself a few years back when I hit a major rough patch, and am now just waiting for the last negative to drop off my credit report. So there IS light at the end of the tunnel.
I'm not a credit counselor or lawyer, so take this with a grain of salt and check the facts, but here's what I learned in the process:
1) Get your credit report (you're allowed a free copy every year) from each of the three credit bureaus and go through it with a fine tooth comb. You may find inaccuracies, accounts that don't even belong to you, etc. You'll also find out who currently has each debt.
1a) IF any of your credit cards are still with the original creditor (Bank of America or Navy Federal or whoever you actually opened an account with), see what you can work out with them. There are VERY generous programs that write off interest and fees and let you work out a small monthly payment for a year or so, at which point all is forgiven/withdrawn from your credit report and you have a working credit card again.
2) BK is NOT the easy fresh start it was just a few years ago. IMO, try to avoid if at all possible.
3) SOL in Florida is either 4 or 5 years, at the discretion of the individual judge. It's because of the screwy way the law is written--it's not clear on how credit cards are treated. DO NOT start the rest of this process until you hit the 5 year mark. It's known as "waking the sleeping dragon" and could cause them to take action such as filing suit.
There are no guarantees that you will be not sued in the meantime. But apply reason rather than fear. It costs a lot of money to go to court. If you don't have money/good credit, what good does it do them to get a judgment against you? Sure, they can recoup the court costs in the judgment. But that's only on paper until (unless) you actually pay it. If the amount you owe any particular creditor is approaching six figures, maybe. But if you have a handful of relatively low-balance cards? It's way easier and less expensive for them to just sell the debt.
4) Assuming your debt is with collection agencies, request, IN WRITING, a "full media debt validation" from each and every collector. Google that term for a sample letter. Make sure your letter gives the company 30 days to validate or delete the item from your credit report. At nearly three years old, your accounts may have been sold and sold and sold. The bottom feeders buy a list of old debts that may or may not be accurate (for pennies each), tack on hundreds or thousands in additional fees, and then try to collect.
Slight tangent -- I very much believe in paying what is owed to the original creditor. But once the debt is sold, the original creditor takes the difference as a loss and cannot legally accept payment from the debtor from that point on. I do NOT believe in paying collection agencies any more than they paid for the debt, which is NEVER more than 40% and more often 10% or less.
The "full media debt validation" requires the collection agency to produce a paper trail including your original agreement with the original creditor, records of all the times the debt was sold, and a full disclosure of the fees that the collection agency is charging. It also includes proof of legal status to collect in Florida (or whatever state). You'd be amazed how many try to collect on debts in states they aren't even licensed in!
5) Most bottom feeders will give up and delete. They don't have records at all, and certainly not a full paper trail. That only leaves the legitimate collection agencies (is that an oxymoron?). Note: you'll need to subscribe to a credit monitoring service ($6.95 to $14.95 a month depending on level of service). Sometimes the bottom feeders delete and then sell, starting the cycle again.
6) Whatever is actually validated, negotiate "pay for deletion." That means you agree on an amount of money (NOT more than the 40% of the original debt that they actually paid, and start your bidding low. One place took care of a $200 debt for 5 bucks to cover the time it took for them to file the deletion!). You send the money and they delete the item from your credit report. Get this in writing before you send money. If you "settle" or even "pay in full," it's noted on your credit report as a new action and causes your credit score to go even lower.
7) The original creditor reports will stay on your credit file for seven years from the first day that you went 30 days past due. But the FICO scoring algorithm weights it by how old it is. So after 3 years it counts less, after 5 years even less, etc. I have a great credit score with one remaining negative from 6 years ago.
Hope this helps! Again, I am not a lawyer and this is not to be taken as legal advice. This is just the way that I understand things based on my own personal experience.
I agree with everything Thundergod just wrote except I won't advocate for any one specific "plan for living". There are many well-constructed plans for managing money out there: choose one that you KNOW you can live within. Consistency is the key. If you choose Suze Ordman or Dave Ramsey and find you can't meet their goals on a month-to-month, year-to-year basis, then find a plan that you CAN meet on a consistent basis and live that plan. 
