<prompt> Human: Sorry to seem so negative and full of despair as the title of this post comes across...I just turned 30 years old and am looking to get my life back together responsiblyfinancially. Long story short, I went to a ridiculously expensive film school that I dropped out of before I turned 20... Never paid a penny on any of my loan throughout my 20s as I just didnt see how, other than my 10,000 federal loan that Im paying back due to garnishment. Im making just 13 an hour full-time and just started to put away about 100 per week in savings. Im not sure how much this bit of savings will help but I feel I need to grow up now that Im 30 yes, this deserves an eye-roll. I havent been able to get any credit cards or even an apartment or car lease without a co-signer. I dont want to live my life this way. I know bankruptcy is not an option with student loans. I just want to get my credit back up and be able to have a clean slate. Yes, I know I owe the money to my creditors for going to film school a decade ago. I feel like my only option is to win the lottery to pay it back and have my clean slate. If you were in this position, what would you do?UPDATE After posting this, I checked my credit report havent in several months and the private loans are now saying Charge OffClosed Account which Im guessing means I no longer owe? I need to talk to someone for legal advice on this. If this is the case, and its been a decade, how do I get these to fall off my credit report? And by them falling off does that mean they no longer hurt my credit? Thank you all for your advice thus far!Assistant: There are a lot of payment programs you should look into.Pay As You Earn is a program that puts you into payments that will not exceed 10 of your current take-home income. If you live below a certain threshold hardship your payments can actually be zero. It is adjusted every year based on your income.If you then work for a non-profit government agency teaching etc, if you can make 10 years of payments, the balance is forgiven.My ex-wife is actually in this same position. Went to private schools and lived on student loans. She got her bachelors, masters, then a doctorate in education, followed by the implosion of the economy. She cant get a professorship as a teacher. 200,00 in debt. She is pursuing this route now, and may be out of trouble in a decade of hard work.Human: Ive never heard of this program. Ill check it out, thanks!  <response>: Dont bother. If your loans arent federal, those payment options are irrelevant.My first stop would be a lawyer. Ask them how to handle the credit implications of your bad debt. 