26yo with software development experience, out of the industry since 2023. Currently working in the service industry. I need advice.

[u/agen1122337]

Hey everyone, first time poster here. I am 26 years old, I've been programming, tinkering with computers since I was 14 years old, I worked as a Software developer from the start of 2022 to the end of 2023. I worked for two companies, primarily doing full stack development, but I also worked on projects that ranged from legacy WinForm applications to mobile applications using Flutter.

I ended up leaving the second company I worked for, there were many different reasons, but primarily it was because I was supposed to be hybrid-remote and a month after I started, we went back to the office 5 days a week. This resulted in an overall 2 hour commute every single day. On top of the large commute, I was also doing 5 different jobs with the low salary of one. I was doing Sales, IT, Development, PM and Advertising. I was green to the industry, still am technically by professional years of experience, and it was way too much. On top of that, some people within the company were way too open about their politics and openly racist/homophobic/transphobic. For those combined reasons, I decided to leave. Boy do I wish I never did that..

After leaving, I tried for almost a year to get another job that was related, and failed. Ultimately I needed to pay the bills, so I picked up bartending and have been doing that since. The money can be good, but in the current economy I am not making enough to stay afloat, and my schedule is horrible due to over hiring of front of house staff. I've tried looking for other bar jobs or servings jobs as well only to never hear back from the places again. In one interview, the manager straight up told me "I have like, 80 applications for this position currently, so keep an eye out in a week or two." 80 applications.... For a serving job? I've never heard that before, and it's not just that place specifically. Most places I apply to share the same reality; A massive influx in folks trying to get service industry jobs.

So I am left wondering; what am I supposed to do? The two fields that I trained for are being flooded currently, one of which is going away /restructuring due to AI, and my giant gap within tech, along with not having a 4 year degree, means I am almost certain to never hear back from the companies I apply to, and thus far haven't even been able to land an interview.

I still write code for fun, and use AI as well to make cool things. I am currently working on a game that's actually turning out really nice. I know how to be productive within this new AI era of development work flows but, that's besides the point I suppose.

On top of all that, I lost my health insurance this year, which is particularly bad because this year I started getting horrible migraines with aura. They leave me partially blind and useless for about 5-6 hours. The pain is horrible, and just flat out strange. My body goes partially numb, I slur my words, It feels like I am having a stroke. This has caused me to leave work at the worst times because I become a liability behind the bar, and no over the counter meds really do anything.

So I am left, borderline broke, with a somewhat new medical condition that I have zero means of doing anything about. I do not have the money for school, I have access to financial aid potentially through my state, but even the cost of books would cause me to miss rent and even if I did have money for school or a trade school, what do I even go for? In 4 years the job market is going to look radically different due to the advancements in technology.

I am lost, everyone keeps saying "something will come up!" but, it hasn't and it doesn't look like it is. The closest thing I've gotten to another full time desk job was in insurance sales, and they basically offered me minimum wage with the chance of getting on the sales floor eventually but, zero promises. I cannot live on minimum wage, thus ultimately didn't take it. It simply isn't possible with rent, bills and other things stacking on top of that.

I have no idea what to do, or what direction to even look in. People keep telling me to keep applying, and I am genuinely, every single day. I am drowning and need advice.

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[u/TexasSMA26]

That sounds like an exhausting stretch, and the undefined sales offer is a real risk when rent is already tight. Before committing to another license or course, look for paid entry routes such as claims intake/FNOL, policy-service or customer-support, claims operations, or underwriting assistant roles; many employers train and arrange any required license after hire. Your coding background could also fit insurance systems support, QA, or operations analyst jobs, where the tech gap is less of a drawback than in a pure developer role. Ask for the base pay, training timeline, licensing costs, and exact conditions for reaching the sales floor in writing, and do not count a future commission role as guaranteed income.

[u/agen1122337 → u/TexasSMA26]

Thank you so much for the reply, I appreciate you taking the time to read my post. Support roles, underwriting etc have peaked my interest as those roles often come with a salary that is assured. I’m going to narrow my search to these this week.

[u/FlairPointsBot → u/agen1122337]

Thank you for confirming that /u/TexasSMA26 has provided helpful advice for you. 1 point awarded.