Hello reddit
I'm in a bit of a pickle and thought I'd start here and just put my story and situation out there so I can try and gauge how effed I am and see if anyone can help. It's been a hell of a past 2.5 years and I'm still struggling to understand how so much time has gone by and how I got so behind. Heck if nothing else maybe writing this down will help me work it all out in my head easier… but here goes:
2019 I'd been working for a family member in the construction field about 5 years doing wire pulling and alarm installation and making around 2k a month – just enough to pay bills and still occasionally buy a nice thing. I lived alone, had low car payments, reasonably low expenses and a struggling but existent savings account.
March 2020 the pandemic hit and work slowed down when the risk of dying for your job shot up exponentially (It was astounding and horrifying how little they cared). With my anxiety spiking regularly making me think I was sick every other day, it eventually got to the point I was laid off as a courtesy.
I applied for unemployment and saved every dollar I could, and out of boredom I started discovering my passions, and saw a different path in life so I enrolled in college courses to earn a degree. I got financial aid to pay for classes and some emergency funding which I also put away.
Over lockdown I was diagnosed with extreme anxiety disorder and severe depression. I managed to find a therapist through medi cal who helped me get food assistance, which is probably why I'm even still here at all. Things are getting better and I’m managing day to day, but it still feels like a job of its own.
I was studying for my future, therefore I was content living off of savings for a while. I really thought I could be living the work free life, since money wasn't a nagging issue. However I got so wrapped up in school I ended up taking more than a year off work. Now my savings have all but dried up and reality is setting in hard.
Over the last few months I worked a few piecemeal jobs for cash scraps, sold some drawings and more recently I've resorted to selling off my personal things on ebay to keep my apartment and feed my cats (barely working since people stopped spending).
I recently tried re applying for unemployment but it's been so long since I've had steady income, they estimate a zero dollar payout.. Did I need to report gvmt or school financial aid? I'm unsure how to even report income if it's not on a w-2. That's how cookie cutter my life has been to this point. The IRS also kept my refund this year and I can't reach them to inquire why. It would have been more than a month's rent so it really hurts not to have that money. I truly don't know what to do besides sell my stuff until I either have nothing left or my survival instinct kicks in and I end up applying at walmart out of desperation (no offense to anyone who has to work there. I respect your hustle)
So before I hit rock bottom, what suggestions do you have for how I can improve my situation? I’d like to at least get back on unemployment and or find a way to have some money coming in while going to school and looking for work. And realistically, are there any other resources out there I might not be taking advantage of?
Thanks so much for reading, especially if you have helpful advice to offer, and please delete if this is the wrong sub for this sort of thing.
Thank you