DO NOT PANIC!!!!!!
You are not the first to ever be laid off.
This will probably not the last time you get laid off.
When I worked for the union, I was laid off 7 times in one year.
I was a "traveller" working outside my home local.
Not sure where you are at but, you should be eligible for for unemployment.
Get to the unemployment office as soon as possible to get the process rolling.
There will be a two week waiting period before any checks come in.
Pay only the bills necessary to keep the home going.
If you believe it's going to be a month or more before you get to the top of the book, write letters to anyone you owe monthly payments to, and explain you are out of work and willing to work with them.
They should be use to this by now, since the big "pandemic" put a lot of people out of work.
I had some credit cards and a car note, most of them were willing to let me pay just the monthly interest, others demanded payment in full.
Guess who got paid.
Get out in front of it, don't wait until you are past due, although some won't discuss anything until you are past due.
Check around to see if their might be some cash side jobs you can find, just little things, installing ceiling fans, ( plenty this time of year) changing out switches or receptacles (people are going to smart switches).
Nothing big that might get you in trouble.
I worked part-time in a plant nursery one off time and as a bowling machine mechanic another.
Not much pay, but the first $100 doesn't effect your unemployment check, may be different now.
So with a job paying only 30% of what I usually made, unemployment and a few ceiling fans, I managed to survive the six weeks waiting to get to the top of book 2.
The first time I was laid off (first year journeyman), I went into panic mode.
Sold some things, I now wish, I never would have sold.
Sold a collection of silver dollars that are now worth over $10,000.
If I hadn't panicked and waited a month or two, when a job became available, I'd still have those silver dollars my Grandmother gave me.
Go slow, make informed decisions.
When you get back to work, get started on a three to six month emergency fund to carry you through these times.
A seperate account to which you put $25 into every pay check, you won't miss it.
I've been putting $150 every two weeks into an account with no check book or ATM access, if I need it, i have to go to the bank to get it.
I can now go six months or longer without employment and still cover the bills.
Watch every penny that goes out.
You would be surprised to find how much you piss off in just a few days.
If you really want to know where your money goes, get one of those pocket sized spiral notebooks.
Write down EVERY, and I mean EVERY penny you spend.
I'm talking pocket money, cash not credit cards.
Toll roads, vending machines, stop and shop store, fast food places, ect.
Anything you pay with cash from your pocket.
You will be amazed at how much cash you dole out without even thinking about it.
If you have a family to feed, check with local churches that have food banks.
Don't let your "pride" get in the way of feeding your family.
These food banks have seen it all.
A few prayers never hurt.
