u/cozybean51

Three weeks ago I was terminated from a job I had worked at for 2 years and 3 months. The reason given was that I missed a shift after my schedule was changed midweek. As far as I knew, I wasn’t scheduled to work that day. I never received any notification that the schedule had changed. The next day, my manager called me and fired me in a phone conversation that lasted less than a minute. As I was saying goodbye to her, she hung up. I loved my job so much. I was consistently enthusiastic and excited to clock in everyday. I poured all of my love and effort into it.

There were no warning signs leading up to this. I had a performance review in April that gave me no indication that my job was at risk. One thing that has stuck with me is that during this review, she showed me the store’s financial numbers and pointed out that I was the employee with the highest labor cost. She expressed to me how they are drowning in debt and need to lower costs and earn more money. (Small business bookstore)

On my last shift (which I did not know would be my last), we had a very personal conversation. I talked about plans to move back to the city with my partner and my struggles finding a second job. She was supportive and created an environment where I felt comfortable opening up. Then a few days later I was fired. The contrast has been difficult to process.

I also found out the position was posted almost immediately after my termination and has already been filled. I understand businesses move on quickly, but emotionally it feels like I was erased overnight.

Another factor is that I’m on the spectrum, and sudden change is something I struggle with. I also tend to take people at face value and assume that if a manager is friendly and interested in my life, the relationship is more personal than it really is. This experience has made me realize I need better professional boundaries, but I’m not entirely sure what those should look like.

I filed for unemployment after my termination and was denied. Once I was removed from the work app, I lost access to information like wage information and other records that would have helped my case. I’m unsure whether an appeal would even be worth pursuing.

I’m trying to move forward and find another job, but I’m still carrying a lot of anger and hurt. I find myself replaying the situation constantly and wondering if I was treated fairly.

For those who have been fired unexpectedly from a job they genuinely cared about, how did you move on from the resentment? And how do you maintain healthy boundaries with managers without becoming completely closed off?

On Thursday May 14th, I woke up with no reason to believe I had work. Last Saturday I did my usual sit down on the bed with my planner and write out my plans for the next week. My app showed my next shift as Sunday. I received no notification, no alert, no text, nothing indicating the schedule had changed midway during the week. That Thursday morning, I was also in the middle of what I can only describe as a mental health crisis brought on by severe PMDD symptoms from a delayed hormonal cycle. The past two weeks have been genuinely debilitating. It was one of the worst mornings I’ve had in a long time. That afternoon my boss texted asking if I was okay. I didn’t understand why. When I checked the app, I saw the schedule had been changed, and I had missed what was now my shift. I had no idea. She told me she wanted to talk.

I spent the entire night in a spiral, already ruminating about the phone call. The next morning, she called at 10am and fired me. She hung up on me while I was saying goodbye. Within the hour, she had already drafted and sent a formal termination letter. That turnaround suggests the decision wasn’t exactly spontaneous.
I had an appointment after our call but right when I got home, I filed for unemployment. By the time I went to access my wage and hour history through the work app, information I needed for the application, she had already removed me.

I texted her to provide more context about what had actually happened that day. She never responded. She then removed me as a follower on Instagram while continuing to follow me herself, and blocked me from their Stories. I went on a different account and found that within 24 hours of firing me, she posted a job listing. For context: not long before this, she had sat me down to talk about cutting everyone’s hours, particularly over the summer, because she was struggling financially. “Drowning in debt” she said verbatim. That same day, a large over the top floral delivery arrived at the shop (that I found out was biweekly and costing well over $400 because prior to this job I was a florist.)

The issues that arose were lateness about a year ago but I fixed the issue and gave myself enough time each morning, and the problem was never brought up again. I was there for over two years. I worked hard for her. I felt part of the community and I loved my job so incredibly much. It really felt like a family after being there for a couple years, and I thought these would be long lasting friendships. I expected basic fairness and the kind of conversation two adults can have before changing someone’s situation, for the better or worse (I’m still grieving so it feels like the worst)

Sorry this was so long, I really needed it off my chest.

I don't even know where to start.

I quit weed two weeks ago and my body has completely fallen apart since then. My period is now 11 days late and I already took a pregnancy test (negative), and I genuinely don't know what's happening to me. I've tried everything to induce it. Nothing is working.

My PMDD symptoms have just been... lingering. Endlessly. Like my body is stuck in this horrible in-between place and won't move forward. Every single day I've been having a mental health crisis. Not a bad day. A crisis. Self harm has found its way back into my life these last two weeks. The only way I've been able to get through is by knocking myself out with medication, which means I've barely been functional or present in my own life.

And today I missed an entire shift at work without even knowing it. I had checked the schedule via Square last Saturday and had one shift this week: Sunday. I wrote it in my planner. My boss changed the schedule after I'd already looked at it, and I never got a notification. It just so happened that today was also the morning I had a really bad mental health episode, so even if I had known, I'm not sure I could have made it in. Now my boss wants to have a conversation and I'm terrified. She says she's sorry I'm having a hard time, but this makes my mental health so much worse, thinking about being fired over this.

I'm not cohesive. I'm barely existing. I'm scared and exhausted and I just needed to say this somewhere people might understand.

Has anyone else had their cycle go completely haywire after quitting weed?

I could really use some support right now.

I work at a small independent bookstore and have been here since February 2024. On weekdays and Saturdays I work 6-hour shifts completely alone. No coworker, no manager on site, nobody.
Because I’m the only one there, I genuinely cannot take a break. The second I sit down to eat, a customer walks in and I have to stop mid-bite to help them. It’s gotten to the point where I’m so hungry I’ll just eat in front of customers at the register, which makes me super anxious and embarrassed, but I physically need to eat.
I’ve never once had an official, uninterrupted break in over a year of working here. I’ve never had a job where I am not able to sit in the back and relax and eat. Is this legal? Does the size of the business matter? Does it depend on the state?

(I’m in California)

Does anyone else feel like they exist in some kind of in-between space that other people can't quite see?

For most of my life, I've felt like a ghost. Not in a dramatic way, just in these small, repeated moments that add up over time.

Like walking into a store with my head up, smiling, ready to engage and the employee ignores me. Then the next person walks in and immediately gets a warm "hey, how's it going?" I've watched this happen more times than I can count. Or if I order a coffee I'll be bright and cheery but will not get the same experience that the barista would give to the next person in line.

Being in a group conversation, genuinely trying to participate, and just... not being looked at or heard. I'll say something and it disappears into the air. Someone else says the same thing two minutes later and everyone responds. When I'm in a conversation with someone alongside my partner, the people talking only looking at him.

And then there's the flip side, which somehow feels just as bad. In public spaces I become hyper-aware of my body and how much room I'm taking up, even when I'm being as careful as possible not to be in anyone's way. People still sigh walking past me, or bump into me without even a glance back. Like I'm an inconvenience. It's made me feel like I have no place in the world sometimes. Too invisible to be acknowledged. Too present to be ignored comfortably. It's exhausting.

I've started to wonder if this is connected to being autistic, something about the way I move through space or present myself socially that doesn't quite land the way I intend it to. And I'm scared this feeling is just... mine to carry forever.

Has anyone else experienced this? Either side of it or both? I'd really love to know I'm not alone in this.

Edit: thank you all for your responses, I feel so much less alone in this

I’ve had to cancel my colonoscopy twice now due to severe medication sensitivity and I don’t know where to go from here.

2024: violently sick on the large prep jug, had to cancel.

2026: switched to SuTab tablets, but I’m extremely, extremely sensitive, and was doing a lot of research about the pills and how ~52% of people who don’t even have sensitivities get sick. To be honest, I got really nervous so I called with concerns and the appointment was cancelled.

I suggested a modified Miralax prep. They said no.

I asked about Cologuard. Still waiting on a callback.

I’m 30, my grandmother put off her colonoscopy for years and died of colon cancer at 79. I want to be screened, I just need a doctor willing to work with me but I know my options are limited because of my insurance. I’m just nervous that I have cancerous polyps just living in me and my body won’t allow me to get through this process of getting screened.

Has anyone with similar sensitivities been able to navigate this?