Ever experience a huge economic downgrade?

I am really sorry to hear your trouble, OP. I hope all works out, I am pulling for you.

Yes I lost more than half of my salary and it took me a good twenty years to fully recover.

I'm in the exact same situation, OP. Got laid off a few months ago. (Same salary then, too.) I decided to take a few months to get ahead of credits needed for a masters degree. When I get a new job, I'll be starting in a new field...at the very bottom.

OP, I'm sorry to hear this is happening to you. I think now is the time to look at every single one of your monthly expenses. Which expenses are truly "fixed" expenses? A couple of years ago, I got rid of cable TV and saved $80 per month. Good luck, OP.

Yes, that happened to me about a year into my first job after college. The economy went into a recession and the field I was in basically came to a screeching halt with maybe 50% of the people still working. I survived by freelancing a lot, so it wasn't all bad. Could pick and choose my jobs and since freelancers don't get benefits, overtime or holidays, it's and unwritten law that your hourly rate is higher than if you were staff. But that downturn in my industry lasted more than a decade. I ended up switching fields entirely. Slow long climb back. But on the plus side, I learned new skills I still use today.

40,000 is not poor. Anyone can survive on that if they choose to. The average income in the US is 31,000. I know, not great but that's what the average American lives off of.

Best advice I could give is assume you may not get another job for a decade. What would you do then? Us that as your budget guide. Pay off all you credit cards and loans so if you run out of money you wont default on them. Keep one or two open but pay them off monthly to keep your credit score good. If you don't cook, time to learn. Don't buy anything that is not an absolute necessity. By that I mean you need pots and pans to cook with, you don't need a new clothes. You may want them but you don't need them. Cut out any dinners with friends and ask them to come meet for coffee or cheap lunch instead. Cut out alcohol and other recreational expenses. Be brutal, you really don't know if your next job will be in 6 months or 6 years. If you do that now by choice, it's much easier than when the money runs out.

I took one, on purpose, to get my life back from my previous-previous job. It didn’t take long to realize what a kiddie pool of bullshit I’d put myself in, but at least I could enjoy my evenings and weekends.

I work hard so my salary climbed each year for five years, though it never matched my previous salary. Then I saw an opening for the job I’m in now, which I love and which pays me more than I was making before.

During those five years I got roommates, scrutinized every monthly expense, stopped watching TV and became a homebody. I’ve retained those sensibilities even though I’m earning more now. It’s nice.

A good rule to follow (and maybe you have already been doing this) is never to live in such a way that you use up your entire salary. If you are earning $80,000, you should try to live and pay all your expenses as though you were earning just $50,000 and save or invest the rest of your salary. That way, you have a nest egg if and when you are downsized, and you also have the skills to live a satisfying life on a lower salary.

A few years ago, a few catastrophic illnesses has me on disability - went from 50g a year to 1342.00 a month - taxes, insurance, and utilities take up 850.of that --- not a lot of wiggle room. Food budget is 7/a day --- no going out, no buying anything.- if I do go out, its with the generosity of friends..the house and car are paid off, and hope they magically last till I give up the ghost..

I've been consistently downwardly mobile my entire life.

So just work two jobs