Feeling depressed =/

[sweatpea559]

I feel like a pathetic little bitch for even complaining but I have to get this off my chest...

I just got out of school a little more than 2 weeks ago. I moved home for good because I couldn't afford to go there anymore. Since I moved home, I also had to quit my job and I'm having such a hard time finding a new one! I applied at two vets to be an animal caretaker, one said they were hiring and I knew that one of them wasn't. Neither called, so I called back the one that claimed to be hiring and the receptionist said they weren't. This made me kind of sad because I need this experience to apply for vet school... Since that fell through I decided to apply at Victoria's Secret (even though I didn't want the job) since they were definitely hiring. I talked to the hiring manager and she took down my number. She told me she'd be doing interviews next week. Next week came and went and no call. So I applied at Target and CVS. None of the CVSs were hiring but one of the Targets was so I was hopeful. No calls. I also called about a dozen other vets offices and retail stores but none of them were hiring. I just don't know what to do anymore. No one is hiring and the places that are obviously don't want me to work there. I have no money and I'm miserable!

I don't have a job and I don't go to school. What the hell am I supposed to do all day. My friends aren't done with school yet and all have jobs, so its not like they're available to do anything. I don't even want to get up in the morning because it seems so pointless! I'm not benefiting myself or anyone else by being up...

I gained 20 pounds while I was at school, and I'm only gaining more and more weight since I've been home. I keep telling myself I'm gonna loose it but it's hard to loose weight when you just sit around the house all day. I try getting ont he treadmil, and I do but it's nothing compared to the workout I got on a daily basis just going through my daily routine when I was at school. If I was gaining weight then who knows how much I'll gain now.

I'm also breaking out like crazy and I don't know why. Not just my face but my body too. I don't want to go anywhere in a bathing suit or do anything with my friends when they ask me to. I really wanted to go to Vegas next weekend and stay at my friends condo but I don't have gas money or money to pitch in for food, and I don't want to be seen all fat and covered in acne.

I basically feel fat and hideous and worthless right now and theres not a whole lot I can do about it. I keep telling myself I'm going to work out every single day until I have some sort of a life again but like I said, even if I work out for and hour or two it hardly makes up for my sedentary lifestyle. I've changed the way I eat but that doesn't help either.

I'm so sick of living this way and its only been a couple weeks. My summer classes don't start until June 22 and I doubt I'll have a job by then... And the FEES! How am I going to pay them? Looking doesn't even seem worth it anymore. The job section of the paper has only 10 or 20 jobs listed and they're all for truck drivers and people with degrees.

At least my stepdad got a job after 2 years of unemployment. I was the only person in my house with a job for years and now I don't have one which feels so weird. Ugh I hate not having any money, and I can't rely on my parents for much because they're still in so much debt from the past few years. They've already been complaining about how much food I eat and how the electric bill has gone up $10 since I've been back. I don't know what to tell them. I'm unemployed and I don't get sent $2000 every month for sitting on my ass like my stepdad did for years.

Life is sooo unfair. I know I could have it a lot worse, at least we still have our apartment (barely!)... Right now it just feels like a mess! Not to mention my OCD and crappy health insurance but that's a whole different story...

 

[rimberry]

How about volunterring at your local humane society? It could help generate some leads, while giving you a reason to get out of bed in the morning.

 

[Shimmer]

Make a list of the issues...not a detailed letter to yourself, but a list.

Figure out which ones you can fix RIGHT NOW (Eating habits, sedentary lifestyle, whatever) and fix them.

The ones you can't, figure out what needs to be done, and start doing it.

Finding a job is a matter of you continually putting yourself out there until you find the right situation. ANd sometimes it means working in a situation that sucks balls until you find the one that doesn't, but if $$$ is a stressor, then a job is the answer.

You're right that life isn't fair but it isn't out to get you either.

Good luck.

 

[LMD84]

as shimmer said try and figure out what you can change in your life right now. and the set some long term goals.

i understand putting on weight because when i was university i packed on a hell of alot of weight. only now am i lossing it. the thing is though you won;t just put weight on because you're at home. you're obviously eating more which is why you're putting on weight. try going out for walks just to keep active (much more exciting than a tredmill!)

you're probs breaking out because you are stressed about so much. start planning your next few months and maybe you'll relax a little more. getting jobs at the moment is really hard. lots of people are in the same position as you. when you have so many people applying for the same job there will be dissapointment. however try your best and one day you will get what you deserve.

 

[sweatpea559]

It's true I am eating more frequently since I've been home, but I'm eating much healthier food. At school I would eat hamburgers and pizza everyday. I think I just got accustomed to climbing up the hills and the stairs, and I lived on the top floor of my dorm building. I was probably taking around 12,000 steps per day and now I'm estimated around 1,000 or maybe 2,000. No matter how much I work out I just can't make up the 10,000 steps... that's soooo much!

I also started doing a job search on Monster to see if they had anything different than in the paper and they did but still only 10 or 15 jobs and nothing I qualify for.

I have been using my calendar on my computer and I have scheduled out my classes for this summer and for the fall already. Planning my life out actually makes it worse because I'm too detail oriented for my own good. I seriously spend hours each day making lists and plans for things that aren't even that important and then stressing out about how I don't have every last detail worked out. Then I usually throw it out and start over the next day thinking I'll do better. I don't know if this is just me trying to do something productive when I have nothing to do or if something is actually wrong with me.

One of my professors thought that I had General Anxiety Disorder but I'm wondering if it's more like OCD. I took a little quiz on a website about OCD and it said it's "highly probable" but my insurance doesn't cover mental health stuff so no way I can know for sure...

I know things will work out in the long term I just wish there was a way I could feel better right now. I have this constant nagging pain in my stomach that I just want gone!

 

[blazeno.8]

My brother wants to be a vet and he knew from the beginning that he needed the experience, so even if a place wasn't willing to hire, he said that he was willing to volunteer for free. He's been there since I was in high school and he's still there now (that I'm out of college). He really likes the work and has been offered a non technical degree holding position there, but had to turn it down because of his hours at school. I'd say get your foot in the door any way you can.
At least if you feel productive, you will be more motivated to do other things in your field and it could possibly be good for your overall well being.

 

[sweatpea559]

If I don't find a job soon I may just go that route. I'm hoping not to though because I was really counting on working full time plus going to school full time... my plans always fall through! I have loans to pay off and I owe my mom money, plus gas and cell phone and all that crap so either way I need to find some way to make money fastt.... =(

 

[SparklingWaves]

delete

 

[luvsic]

You seriously sound like how I sounded about 5 months ago. I took a semester off because I felt like I was going nowhere with my life, but when I came home I just started eating a lot and sitting on my ass, being an unproductive slob well, up until maybe a week ago. Still working on some things, but they're getting better.

Here is my advice to you:

It's really easy to slink into a really bad and negative mindset when you're already down. Feeling useless is one of the worst feelings in the world - I remember getting eternally frustrated with myself because I was just so apathetic about everything. On days I wouldn't work, I'd wake up, eat, go on the internet, eat, sleep, then go on the internet and then sleep. THAT was literally my schedule for MONTHS. My parents wanted to just kick my ass and tell me to go do something...ANYTHING but go online!

So my first warning to you is, one of the first steps of getting yourself out of a rut is to prevent yourself from mindless hours of zombie surfing the web. Really, DONT SLINK INTO THIS HABIT. It's a skull and crossbones kind of harm, a killer in its own way.

Just do anything to get out - go for a walk through your neighborhood, window shop at the mall. Just get out of the house. Trust me, you feel loads better than just sitting on your bed all day.

Exercise. There's no easy way around saying it, but it's just one of those things you gotta do. Get up and force yourself to go to the gym, or like I said before take a few laps around your neighborhood. It really can be like its own therapy in itself, and plus you'll melt off those pounds so you can feel healthier and better than yourself.

Be hygienic. This sounds nasty, but on days of my depression I would just sleep for hours and not shower sometimes, not wash my face or brush my teeth out of sheer laziness. Guess what this did to myself? Make me more depressed and embarrassed of myself, and more resistant to going out in public. Keep yourself clean and fresh, all the time, sometimes its just the little things that you can do for yourself.

Lastly, when you're looking for a retail job, you have to sometimes give retailers a nudge in the right direction. If they don't call you, call them back. Be aggressive, show them that you want this job (but don't be too pesky!) When I applied for my job, they interviewed me and said they'd call back on tuesday. Tuesday came around and I didn't hear from them, so I called them to ask. They had told me I had gotten the job! Just showing that you want the job already shows a lot. Sometimes you can't be picky about where you work either..when I was looking I literally went to every store in the mall to get applications. Fill a bunch out, turn them back in, and wait. Go to all the shops around your neighborhoodl...I am sure with all of this searching you will find one in the meantime to at least fill your money needs.

GL!

 

[sweatpea559]

So I just found out the guy that had my stepdad's job before he did got accepted back, leaving my stepdad unemployed once again!...

And... I've officially applied for 12 jobs (working on 2 more apps) and have gotten 0 phone calls. You would think I was a convicted felon or something!

At least I have lost 2 pounds... somehow I don't feel any better though. I have to pay my fees for my summer classes by the time class starts or I'll get dropped... and that's only a month away! After I pay my phone bill I won't have enough to pay them. I'll have to get my mom to pay them or my phone bill with her overdraft protection because I absolutely need to take this class (She's already 2,500 in the negative)!

I'm so discouraged, and how my parents will pay the rent... I don't have a clue! We're already on food stamps. So much for my fruit and veggie kick! They're officially off the grocery list because of the price/lack of shelf life/lack of filling-ness! grr...

 

[dulcekitty]

Hey, just want to put my 2 cents in about how important it is to follow up on your application. It's something a lot of people are afraid of doing, but it REALLY helps, puts you in their mind and makes you look eager. Just a quick phone call a few days later saying "Hi, I recently submitted my application. I think I'd be a good match for the position and wanted to know if it was possible to schedule and interview if the position is still open." If the VS lady told you she was interviewing the following week, as soon as the week started it would have been good to call and remind her of your application and that she told you she'd be interviewing. VS is group so she probably would have fit you in. The worst they can do is say no, but you'd be surprised how you can get hired just from being persistent.

 

[sweatpea559]

Thanks for your comment! The lady at VS actually just called me today. Weird. I guess something happened and she didn't get around to interviews, or maybe she did but still needs more people. Either way I have an interview this Friday. I'm excited. I had a feeling I would get a call today... hopefully another one tomorrow.

And that is a good idea about following up, and I usually do whenever I apply in person. I just didn't this time because I really didn't want to work for VS! lol... but I can't be that picky. Most of my apps were online so I don't usually follow those up because I don't know how long it takes to actually get received by the specific store I'm applying to. Would you happen to know?

 

[LMD84]

good luck on your interview on friday

think positive! just because it's not your ideal place to work doesn't mean it won't end up being right for you!

 

[dulcekitty]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweatpea559 Thanks for your comment! The lady at VS actually just called me today. Weird. I guess something happened and she didn't get around to interviews, or maybe she did but still needs more people. Either way I have an interview this Friday. I'm excited. I had a feeling I would get a call today... hopefully another one tomorrow. And that is a good idea about following up, and I usually do whenever I apply in person. I just didn't this time because I really didn't want to work for VS! lol... but I can't be that picky. Most of my apps were online so I don't usually follow those up because I don't know how long it takes to actually get received by the specific store I'm applying to. Would you happen to know?

I worked for VS before. It took them like 2 months to call me for an interview, but that was because they wanted seasonal people. I think all the apps go first to the flagship store to get checked and then get sent back and calls are made from the specific store. They DO call references btw so make sure your references are current.

I understand that you don't want to work for VS!!! Lol... I haaaaaaaaaaaated it. But until I got a better job, it was a paycheck in my pocket and it wasn't hard. I worked in the huge flagship store in NYC and it was very bootcamp-like. They're very much about a smile glued to your face and "audience selling" aka yelling at people about what the specials are. Don't even get me started on the charge goals (2 charges for every 4 hours, every day). But what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I heard the smaller stores are much better to work at though. Just realize that this is temporary and just keep giving out your resumes to managers and following up. You'll end up somewhere you enjoy.

(If you want tips on the VS interview, let me know!)

 

[sweatpea559]

I would LOVE tips for the interview! I've never worked retail before so I have no idea what they'll ask! lol...

 

[dulcekitty]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweatpea559 I would LOVE tips for the interview! I've never worked retail before so I have no idea what they'll ask! lol...

Basic retail questions -

"Describe a time you had a difficult customer and how you handled it"
"How would you deal with a difficult coworker/supervisor?"
"What do you do if you see someone stealing?
"Why do you want to work for this company?"

VS also asks what you would say in certain sales situations. They're all about SMILES so when you interview, be really perky and smile and they'll like you right away. Make all your answers about how honest you are, how you always report things to a manager, how you can build sales with suggestive selling.Since you don't have retail experience, use examples from your past work in order to answer their questions. Answer ALL of them. Don't say you aren't sure. If you see someone stealing, you'll alert a manager or LP and give the customer excellent customer service. Stress you want to work in beauty unless you don't mind working with bras and panties. I'll just warn you - it's MUCH easier to close beauty than it is to close the rest of the store.

If you do that, you'll more likely than not be hired. Just let them know what you can do for them and why you'd be great at it!

 

[sweatpea559]

Thanks for all of your help. My interview is tomorrow and I feel kind of nervous. I really don't want to work there! Haha... I'm gonna go anyway though. I did apply at 3 different Vons stores just now so hopefully that works out. Seems like an easy enough job.

 

[Holy Rapture]

I just went through the whole thread and I'm really happy that you got called for an interview!! It's natural to be stressed but, try not to over think

All the best! I hope everything works out great for you

 

[sweatpea559]

So I'm back from my interview. It went pretty well. There were five girls and they only asked each of us about two questions. I got asked, "What has been a positive experience of yours as a customer," and, "What was your least favorite part of your last job." Oh and she also asked us what the difference is between selling and servicing a customer. One girl was not dressed professionally and one girl was late. So if they narrow it down by that I have a 1 in 3 chance! Haha...

 

[dulcekitty]

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweatpea559 So I'm back from my interview. It went pretty well. There were five girls and they only asked each of us about two questions. I got asked, "What has been a positive experience of yours as a customer," and, "What was your least favorite part of your last job." Oh and she also asked us what the difference is between selling and servicing a customer. One girl was not dressed professionally and one girl was late. So if they narrow it down by that I have a 1 in 3 chance! Haha...

I forgot about that question... what did you say? I hope you used that chance to mention excellent customer service and building sales! (BTW VS is at-will, so if you get a call back from a better job, you can leave without a 2 week if you choose. It's not the best company to work for (Limited in general sucks balls) but it's $$$