Many people wonder how much money they should have set aside in case of an emergency. A good rule of thumb is to make sure that you have 3 to 6 months worth of your salary set aside. That way, if an emergency occurs you will be prepared.
The scary part is, if you have credit card debt then the interest they are charging you is probably preventing you from having adequate savings. If you are able to discharge that debt (and the interest) through a Chapter 7 or a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, then you would be in a better position financially to save for an emergency.
Once you file the bankruptcy, you would need to get come credit counseling in order to rehabilitate your credit score. Most people are able to re-establish their credit scores much more quickly than they previously believed.