A 36-year-old man has opened up about the emotional impact of being unemployed for nearly one-and-a-half years despite constantly applying for jobs. In a Reddit post, he shared how repeated rejections, unanswered applications and long periods without interviews finally pushed him to tears after years of holding his emotions in.
His post has now started conversations online, with many people saying they are facing similar struggles in the current job market. Several users said the pressure of constant job hunting, ghosting from companies and financial stress has left them emotionally exhausted.
Man Shares Emotional Post Online
The man shared his experience in a post titled, “36M Broke down and cried for the first time in years.” In the post, he explained that he had been searching for work for almost 18 months but had not been able to secure a stable job despite making continuous efforts.
“Wish I was joking. 1.5 years in. Countless applications. LinkedIn messages. Networking calls, Zooms, etc., very few interviews. And after my latest rejection, my eyes started to water up, and it just happened,” he wrote.
The user said he had not cried in years and was surprised by his own emotional reaction. “First time in maybe 5+ years. Kind of laughing about it now as I write this, but it’s one of those awkward, embarrassing laughs,” he added.
He also described how difficult it had become to stay positive after such a long period without success. According to him, advice like enjoying free time, going outside or picking up hobbies only helps for a short while before anxiety and self-doubt start taking over.
“The typical “enjoy this time off”, “get outside” and “pick up new hobbies” only lasts for the first 6 months. Then its just feeling anxious, worthless 24/7. I check my email probably like 1000x a day hoping to see something only to be disappointed. How are people surviving emotionally? Not talking about financially because that’s a whole separate nightmare,” he wrote.
Others Shared Similar Struggles
As the post spread online, many users related to his experience and shared their own struggles with the current hiring market. Several people said they were also dealing with constant rejection, lack of responses from recruiters and mental stress caused by unemployment.
“Can only offer solidarity at this point tbh. I’m struggling to cope with this, too. Never felt so depressed in my entire life,” a user wrote.
Another commented, “Keep going, I was there a year ago. It’s frustrating as hell, but keep going.”
A person shared how talking to a friend facing the same situation had helped emotionally. “I’m only surviving this cause I have a friend doing the job hunting thing as well and we get together every two weeks to grab a beer and bitch about all the ridiculous interviews, ghosting and unbelievable job offerings in our town,” the comment read.
Another user tried to comfort him by saying, “I’d just like to add that crying is actually your body’s way of surviving emotionally. Emotional tears wash out stress-related chemicals like cortisol. Good that you got it out!”