It seems that, everywhere, you find advice to read on how to get a coding job that doesn't work. Did you understand the advice correctly? Did you do the advice correctly? There's nobody to ask. No feedback loop.
You can ask me (in the chat) at the FREE Resume+ webinar.
Social media, like cscareerquestions , has OK advice. If you take that advice and implement it appropriately and competently, it should help your search for your first real coding job to be quite a bit better than is.
But how do you know if you are doing it correctly?
You need a forum that is live and interactive. The FREE Resume+ webinar is live and interactive:
But, if you've got it all figured out, then don't come to the FREE Resume+ webinar.
You can always attend the next one, 6 months from now, in December, if something comes up.
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If you want to want to fix this on a free group video call with other new coders, DM me.

I have started in the medical research field about three years ago but I am thinking about getting a part time on the side due to the living expenses in my area (Florida 🙃)
I was thinking getting a position at a Golf course or Dispensary but the thing is my customefood industry experience is from years ago.
I dont think it would be relevant to put in my current job as it has nothing to do with what Im going for and if I put in the accurate timeline for when I worked as a cashie hostess they would think that Ive been jobless for 5+ years.
How can I tailor my resume to make it relevant or what should I do instead?
Any advice is appreciated!

I have started in the medical research field about three years ago but I am thinking about getting a part time on the side due to the living expenses in my area (Florida 🙃)
I was thinking getting a position at a Golf course or Dispensary but the thing is my customefood industry experience is from years ago.
I dont think it would be relevant to put in my current job as it has nothing to do with what Im going for and if I put in the accurate timeline for when I worked as a cashie hostess they would think that Ive been jobless for 5+ years.
How can I tailor my resume to make it relevant or what should I do instead?
Any advice is appreciated!

I just need to vent, because I myself work for a corporation as well. A week after applying for FMLA she gets fired. We had consoled with a law firm, but haven’t heard anything as of yet. Honestly moving forward, she’s pulling out her entire 401k paying off all of her personal debts. Luckily, we were recently married last month so I put her on my Medical. Unfortunately, it’s blue cross blue shield and she was receiving Kaiser care and now has to give birth in Davis with a $3000 coinsurance compared to the $5.00 she would have spent. I had assisted with updating her resume and linkedin. If anyone in town has been in similar situations such as this, how did you go about it?

I just need to vent, because I myself work for a corporation as well. A week after applying for FMLA she gets fired. We had consoled with a law firm, but haven’t heard anything as of yet. Honestly moving forward, she’s pulling out her entire 401k paying off all of her personal debts. Luckily, we were recently married last month so I put her on my Medical. Unfortunately, it’s blue cross blue shield and she was receiving Kaiser care and now has to give birth in Davis with a $3000 coinsurance compared to the $5.00 she would have spent. I had assisted with updating her resume and linkedin. If anyone in town has been in similar situations such as this, how did you go about it?

See comments for the rest of the story.
I need some opinions and advice regarding a job. I am currently a senior Health Science student (Pre-PA), and I am trying to gain additional patient care hours. I have enough to apply to the PA programs I wish to attend, but I would like more by the time I start grad school.
Last year (around March), I applied to a medical scribe job per the request of the doctor I would be working for. The job is through a major hospital system, which I will not name, that is in the south of the US.
To say the least, trying to get hired by this hospital system has been an absolute nightmare. (1) The job listing did not specify if it was part-time or full-time. I am a full-time student, so when the application asked which I prefer, I put part-time. HR communicated with the doctor that they did not want to hire me to work part-time. Due to this, I offered to work full-time (I would go to class, come in after, and stay late to get all of my hours). She used to scribe on paper and then have a medical scribe transfer it to EMR, so that would not be an issue to her. (2) The job listing specified that I had to have one year of scribing experience. I did not realize volunteering hours count, too, so my original resume only included paid hours (~ 3 months). HR communicated with the doctor that they would not hire me due to lack of experience, which is reasonable. I asked the doctor if volunteering would count, and she said yes. We ended up informing HR of my volunteering experience (~ 10 months). With my volunteering hours and paid hours combined, I have enough experience for the job. (3) We discussed plans for me to go to class, come into work, and stay late with HR. HR said they would not hire me unless I was in the room from 8–5 with the doctor. If I took the job and my clock-in/clock-out times didn’t reflect this, I would be fired. I could not do this because of my full-time, on-campus course load. (4) The doctor who wants me to work for them got the head of her specialty’s department involved to have a meeting with HR and plead my/the doctor’s case. They still refused to hire me. (5) HR said I could scribe for them if I worked for them for one year. The doctor tried getting me hired at the front desk with the understanding (and verbal agreement with HR) that I would become a scribe in the back after one year at the front desk. (6) The job listing said one year of customer service experience (no specification between paid or volunteer) was required, which I have from volunteering at various places (city zoo, church nursery, etc.) and from working in my university’s tutoring center. After I applied to the position, they refused to hire me without giving a reason. (7) The doctor and I were tired of going back and forth with HR. It had been two months at this point. The doctor requested to someone at the hospital’s associated med school to create a job position for me to be able to work front desk in her clinic. This process was a breeze, and the med school hired me without any problems! They even created a job position and title that did not exist just to help us out. I proceeded to work the front desk and do other clerical duties in the office for the next year.

Hi! I need (ok, I'm desperate for) a job (even a temporary job is fine) where I can make at least 3000 USD in the next few weeks. I recently quit teaching, but if there's a teaching job that pays now, I'll do it for sure. I was a math and chemistry teacheprofessor (mostly math), and also taught a STEM success class that largely focused on research skills and writing. I also have solid skills in data analysis, item analysis, data annotation and labeling, editing, curriculum design, assessment design, LMS admin ...really anything related to teaching, learning, and data (but I'm not a great coder). My dream job would combine data analysis and education.
I know it's a HUGE ask and likely won't go anywhere. I have a large medical expense (no insurance, but it's necessary) coming up and they want full payment first. Even though I have decent credit (TransUnion, anyway), my debt to income ratio is super high because of all my student loans. So I can't get a personal loan.
If you have/know of anything that sounds like a good fit, please let me know!

This happened last year but this felt like the perfect place to post about it. Still haunts me to this day but there is a happy ending.
I (33f) am a registered medical assistant.
Last year when I was looking for a new job I thought I had found the perfect one. I found it on Indeed and applied, resume being attached to your account. They liked my resume enough to message me directly and ask for an interview I tape of myself and send back to them. I do that and not long after they ask to do a video interview with one of the office managers. Interview went great and I was feeling confident. At this point we're communicating through email and I get another email asking to come in person to check out the clinic and see if I would get along with everyone.
We set up a time not longer after for me to come in and chat with the other MA's and meet the doctor I would be working with. Everyone was very friendly and it seemed like it would be a good fit. This job was actually in the same building as my first MA job 4 years prior just a couple floors up, which made it feel almost full circle in a way. I go back to her office and she basically offers me the job but doesn't want me to accept right away, would like me to think on it and they would email me all the details the next day at noon. So say I was over the moon excited would be an understatement. This job was offering a 4-10 schedule, which it what I was looking for. They gave you $200 a year allowance for scrubs, you could wear your own. But most importantly it was getting me out of a job I HATED.
I write up a two week notice letter for my manager and give it to her promptly the next day, I was not waiting around. Well noon rolls around and nothing, 12:15 still nothing. Finally around 12:30 I get an email from the manager saying she had been in meetings all day but would be getting back to me shortly. Not too long after I get an email (not in the chain we had been communicating in) stating they they were so sorry but they would going in a different direction with the position. She said it was a very hard decision. I was absolutely devastated, crying so hard that I couldn't control myself. I told my manager they had recanted their offer and thankfully she was understanding and said we'd pretend I hadn't given her the letter of resignation.
I had almost given up searching for a new job. Had done so many interviews and this was the ONLY promising one and it was so perfect for me. I was also working with a contact agency who were helping me get interviews. I was looking for something closer and they knew that too. A couple days later they said they had gotten me a job interview that was at a clinic close to my house. I was hesitant at first but it was close to home and they were actually only looking for CMA's but the company was able to convince them to let me interview.
I did a video interview with the supervisor of the clinic and we hit it off immediately. He was 37, a little flamboyant and had worked his way up to being supervisor from Lead MA, the best kind of management you want/need. Well not too long after, literally less than an hour, I was offered the job! He knew what had happened with last clinic and wouldn't offer the job unless he meant it. Of course I accepted and man has it changed the course of my life for the better.
The clinic is literally a 7-8 minute drive from my house, mostly residential. I have a great work ethic and they could see that right away so within less than 2 months of me starting as a contract worker they offered me an apprenticeship position! It was 1 year of on the job working as well as homework from home. You also had to commit 1 year to the clinic that did the program after you finished but after that year you could leave. I also ended up getting my 4-10, with the off day being Wednesday which is perfect. I love my doctor that I work with. She is also mid-late 30s and we get along great. I have honestly NEVER been happier at a job. My work life balance is great, I've only called out 3 days of work in 14 months and that was because I was literally in the ER. My apprenticeship is almost done, just have to finish the hours and I can take the test to become certified! After that I can make at least $7 more dollars an hour.
Crazy how when I thought everything was falling apart, it was actually coming together.
TL;DR : Did 3 interviews, got offered the job, quit my other job and then they recanted their offer. Next job offer is the happiest I've ever been and now I'm almost certified because of the apprenticeship they offered me.

I just got fired from a major corporation. I’ve been a pharmacy technician since October 2021. I’m near Charlotte, NC. USA
I can fill in more details as needed. I feel like so much has happened during my time with this company, I’m not even really sure which parts of the story are relevant.
But to start, I was at a store that didn’t have a store manager for 6 months and I was having issues getting hours, support, literally any paperwork being done because my pharmacy manager (pharmacist in charge, RXM) did not like me. We were understaffed, there was a ton of drama. I had spoken to the district manager (DM) about my issues several times and finally after a technician lashed out and threw some filling totes and some bagged prescriptions at me and another technician, I called him after work and told him I no longer felt safe and wouldn’t be returning to work until he handled the situation.
I help out at other stores all the time and one of the stores I help out offered me to transfer. Additionally, right after I left pretty much everyone quit, I was not the only person with issues at that store. After that situation, since I was already starting the process of transferring, instead of waiting two more weeks I immediately went to the new store. During this time I had started the process for ADA accommodations through HR and with my doctor.
The week I started at the new store, I sat down with the pharmacy tech manager (RXOM) and the store manager (SM). This probably should have been my first red flag, but the SM basically asked something along the lines of why he should let me transfer because it sounds like I had a lot of problems at the old store. So upon starting at this specific store, I disclosed issues I have socially due to my disability and stated that I needed clear communication because I do not pick up on hints or subtleties and that I needed clear feedback when I have made a mistake or in a situation where I upset someone. I also disclosed that I would need additional assistance in tense situations with customers and coworkers. I explained there was a lot of drama and pettiness at my old pharmacy and that I inadvertently caused a lot of issues because I was oblivious to it. The SM basically decided that it didn’t sound like an issue to be clear and concise and kind of guide me through situations that come up. He assured me I could talk to him anytime. I was repeatedly ignored when I requested aid in those situations. And then if the outcome was less than satisfactory, I was punished. The tech manager became my support needs liaison, but the store and assistant manager refused to accommodate me. The tech manager actually got a lot of crap for trying to help me. I have a disability that can affect the way I am perceived by other people and speaking to people about it usually helps clear up any problems. I was not given an opportunity to do this. I thought I was protecting myself my disclosing my needs and weaknesses.
So at this store a few things happened with different people all at once and the store became short staffed. I started helping out a lot, staying late when I could, picking up shifts even though I had to find extra childcare. The pharmacy manager quit a few weeks after I got there, a few technicians quit or drastically reduced their hours, a couple people went on leave. So the ESM (assistant store manager) started helping out in the pharmacy more, mostly with filling prescriptions. I was warned before she started helping out that she was really prickly and if I had any issues that I could talk to the RXOM. There were a few things that came up and he told me that I wasn’t misconstruing things, to just ignore her.
And then came a day where we had a ton of call outs, my RXOM wasn’t in that day and the SM had left. It was Christmas eve weekend. So the pharmacy was gonna be closed the next day. So we were extremely short staffed, extremely busy and the phones were insane. The ESM started out the day basically complaining to us about how nothing was done, it was a mess, etc etc. I wouldn’t even call it passive aggressive. She was outright threatening and saying she would definitely be telling the RXM and SM about how incompetent we were, how out of hand everything was.
There was an incident with a customer, he was yelling at me because I went to lunch before helping him and instead of letting me handle it, the ESM jumped in without really even getting a handle on what was happening. I got written up for the way I spoke to the patient and how I handled the situation with the ESM because I had stepped over to the floater pharmacist and when asked I explained the situation. She told the story as me mumbling under my breath and complaining and carrying on. The rest of the day was pretty much the same, her carrying on about how useless we were and at one point she said it was a mess and that we (the techs) would be staying after to clean it up. I was slightly irritated that she told me I had to rather than asking, especially because the mess was from the days previous, from other techs, etc. It just had been a hectic few days, with short staff. I knew how she was though so I just decided I would stay. Right before we closed, she told me she wanted to speak to me. I had assumed she was going to give us a game plan for how to clean up quickly so we could go. I went over to her after we closed and she started to tear into me for disrespecting her and then noticed I wasn’t making eye contact. It had been a long day and I was feeling really overwhelmed. She made a big deal about it and I told her I couldn’t make eye contact with her because I have a disability but assured her I was listening to her. She went back and forth with me a few times basically trying to force me to look her in the eyes or I was disrespecting her. She ended up saying that she couldn’t speak to me if I wasn’t going to look her in the eyes when she spoke to me. I took this as a dismissal, so part of my write up was for insubordination because I left and refused to have a conversation with her. I reported the incident to HR, briefly spoke with them and thought that was the end of it.
Well shortly after, she started being extremely short with me, very dramatically avoidant like when I walked in the pharmacy would say things like “that’s my cue to leave”. If she asked for help out loud, if I tried to help her she would tell me she didn’t want my help and she would get someone else. I tried not to let it bother me but it definitely stressed me out over time. The few times I did help her, she would throw whatever she was working on down and storm from the pharmacy muttering that she would tell SM about whatever, usually swearing. I asked the other managers what I was doing wrong and was never given any answers. Or guidance. I brought it up a few times and was always brushed off. That never really ended.
An important detail is that the schedule was consistently put out on Wednesdays, usually evenings and our week started on Thursdays. Our weeks run Thursdays-Wednesdays.
There were a few other small issues, I had talked to the managers about issues with scheduling and basically just got constantly brushed off. I had agreed to a general schedule of opens and mids and every other Sunday when I transferred and they weren’t able to accommodate it anymore, they started scheduling me all over the place, closes, several weekends in a row. This made childcare difficult especially with short notice because daycare has set hours. When I got my first warning about tardiness, I brought this up and was accused of blaming everyone else for my tardiness and told to have some accountability.
By this point, I dreaded going to work when the SM or ESM was there. I would get so anxious, I would be physically sick, throwing up, gastro issues, migraines. I was constantly in a state of overstimulation. Again, I asked for help and got blown off.
So in February there was an incident that led up to me requesting short term leave. My son had a minor medical issue that I took him to the doctor for, she made an appointment for the following Thursday at an eye doctor at 8:15am. I told my RXOM I couldn’t work Thursday, he ended up scheduling me to close. 12-9. I called out around 9am after getting to my son’s appointment and learning he had to do some tests for underlying issues including being dilated. He’s 3 so I needed to be with him because he was really disoriented. We finished around 4pm and my RXOM had texted me several times for updates telling me other people called out and they really needed me. I told him that my son needed me and he basically begged me to come in for a few hours to close. I finally relented and got there around 5-6 and stayed until close. No one said anything to me, so I didn’t think anything of it. A few weeks go by and on February 19, I was called into the office for a meeting with the SM and RXOM and received a write up for being 5 hours late that day. If I would have just left it as a call out, there would be no disciplinary action because I had not used any yet for the year. This was incredibly frustrating and the way it was presented was really overwhelming. I told them I was getting overwhelmed and would like to step out, the SM continued to talk down to me. I was getting increasingly agitated, my stims were getting faster and I started to rock back and forth, beginning to have an autistic meltdown. The SM told me I needed to calm down, tried to get me to speak to him while I was shutting down and just kept scolding me, I honestly don’t even know what he was saying by this point. I told the RXOM I needed to step out and I walked out of the office next door to the break room to turn on the sink and I just completely shut down, I crawled under the counter in the break room and had a complete shutdown/meltdown. My muscles locked up, I was crying and rocking back and forth and covering my ears and had my arms over my eyes, all stimulation was bothering me. The RXOM came to check on me and saw me having a meltdown and that I was unable to communicate so he pulled my file and called my emergency contact and basically just told him I was melting down and I was under the sink and needed to be picked up.
My partner came to get me, we left my car, I went home and calmed down and then called my company’s HR and put a request in for short term medical leave. My doctor had been urging me to do this for over 6 months. I texted my RXOM and SM asking what I should do next and heard nothing so I reported to work on 2/20. Upon arriving, the guest pharmacist notified me we had a call out. After everyone arrived, I asked who the call out was and the ESM, pharmacist and other techs didn’t know. The SM was not there. The RXOM wasn’t answering my texts. An hour into my shift, the RXOM told me that they were told my leave was approved and I wouldn’t be there. I asked what to do and got nothing in response.
During my lunch break on 2/20/24, I received a call on my personal phone from HR outlining my short term leave and giving me instruction on paperwork. They verified leave was supposed to start 2/19 and I explained no one answered me so I reported to work. She told me she would have to change my leave to go into effect starting 2/21.
Fast forward, my leave ends 5/8/24, and I had not heard anything beyond communication with HR about it ending. I text my RXM and tell him I am returning to work and ask what my next steps are. He replies late evening and tells me to reach out to SM and I tell him I will in the morning. The next morning, I receive a text with my name written in and highlighted, I’m not scheduled for the first few days (Thursday-Sunday) and I’m scheduled Monday-Wednesday. So I go in for my scheduled shift on 5/13/24. During my leave, my RXOM and a bunch of technicians quit. We gained a full time staff pharmacist and a couple technicians. I get there at 10:00 and I work until 12:00 (so for two hours) and I’m called into the office with the SM and RXM and told the SM told me that I received a final written warning for insubordination and tardiness so they decided to terminate my employment due to my continued insubordination and job abandonment and because a member of management complained about my attitude. He went on to say that he contacted HR and reported that I had an “episode” and walked away from him when he was trying to communicate with me and resolve a conflict which was the insubordination and then after my “episode” I went home instead of finishing my shift. Despite putting my leave in the day it happened, because the date of leave was changed, the day I left early wasn’t covered under FMLA.
So far, I have submitted a request to the EEOC, but their first available appointment was 11/4/24. I was not in a state to call lawyers today, but I filled out a couple online forms for Employment Discrimination lawyers that had online contact forms. Immediately after being terminated, I went to my car and logged into the employee portal and downloaded all of my available paystubs and the documented disciplinary action sheets. There wasn’t one for termination, I asked my SM how I would obtain that information and he told me to contact HR. I have some screenshots from text message communication mostly asking the RXOM for help with conflicts, but the SM would really only talk to me in the office.
I’m looking for advice on what to do next. I am feeling pretty overwhelmed. Obviously, I am going to work on my resume and start applying to jobs, but beyond that I’m not really sure what to do next. Any advice is appreciated. Even if it’s to tell me that I’m in the wrong. If you read my novel, thank you. <3
TLDR; I have autism and I was bullied into having a meltdown and then fired after returning from short term medical leave for going home early. I feel like they were looking for reasons to fire me as retaliation for reporting the ESM to HR.

Context: I’m 24, currently unemployed for the past two months (actively searching for work and working with job developers), no assets and have close to 65k in debt but 25k is OSAP which I’m not worried about because they’re on pause and have no interest
Of the remaining 40k, 30k is from my student line of credit that just recently got converted into a loan. The rest credit card debt (8.7k) from three different cards, one is 6.6k the two are about 1k each
The vast majority of my debt is from funding myself through school. I worked and received OSAP but still needed the line of credit since those weren’t enough for rent and groceries.
My credit score was always excellent up until two years ago where the credit card debt started building. My cat got very sick and long story short i maxed out my 7k credit card on him (worth it, he’s healthy and happy now) and that’s where all the cc debt comes from. I’ve always made my monthly payments that are over $300 on that one cc alone but it all just goes to interest so the principal hasn’t come down much, same with all my other debts
I pay roughly $750 towards debts a month. I just can’t afford that + rent + groceries + other essentials like bus pass, phone bill and medications etc. I quit my low paying job because of an extremely toxic environment and never thought it would take me months to find literally any min wage job especially since I have a degree + leadership experience on my resume.
I’ve only made it this far without working because of what I got back from my tax refund but I have literally no more money left to pay all my debts and am considering filing for bankruptcy (I have an appointment with an LIT to seek professional advice)

Hi everyone, so I am a Canadian student who is doing a degree in science. I am by definition "traditionally premed," as in, my resume is catered to, and very strong for medical schools. However, as someone who likes to explore my options, recently I have begun liking the idea of getting an MBA at a top-ranked business school in the states (Yes I know that this is very difficult already), I just wanted to know if it is even possible for me to apply for an MBA at a school like ROSS or STERN for example, without a resume catered to business? For context, I have absolutely no experience in a business setting, however, I have a couple medical publications, presentations, and have worked in pharmacy, amongst other things of course.
Thank you very much for your guidance!

I am a graduating senior who has no internship experience. I really dropped the ball and honestly have never even done a leetcode question. I had some significant medical issues that caused me to take two years off of school, and it was a big enough challenge adapting when I returned.
As of right now, my only option that I have for this summer is an unpaid research position in a robotics lab. I would get experience working on computer vision/ML and also some hands on experience working with 3D printing and mechanical stuff if I'm interested. If I make significant contributions, they are happy to put my name on the paper they will be publishing at the end of the summer.
My concern is that it will take up a lot of time and I have heard that research is only useful if you are trying to go to grad school. If I didn't take the research position, I would probably spend the summer grinding leetcode and sending out applications. Will doing research just delay my preparation for interviews and add nothing to my resume?

I have dry eyes, it was found in a prior visit. In this follow up the OD ordered did a tear test, it's 50% blocked for both eyes.
Ordered prescription eye drops to help (but optional), or OTC lubricant + hot pad.
At beginning the did basic eye chart, and for the combined services i just got a bill with the code 99214 with a "level 4" note and 92285.
Just checking. seems excessive to me as it's not urgent to the OR, nor was it a discovered problem in the appt. But not a medical coder. Hoping you can share insight. Thanks!

You can't afford to pay somebody to help you make a good resume. You don't have the cash. You can't afford it.
If you had a coding job, you'd have the cash. Then, you could pay somebody to help you make a good resume. But you wouldn't need a good resume because you already have a coding job.
Kind of a catch-22, right?
But you can't do it on your own, you're stuck. No cash for you, no coding job for you ... until, a few years from now, when the next good job market comes along. In a good job market, they will overlook that your bad resume and interview you, anyway.
But your bad resume can get you cash, much less cash, if you get a job working the drive thru at McDonald's. They'll hire you, even though you have a bad resume.
If you do that, you don't need to pay to have a good resume. Sure, you have to work at McDonald's instead of at a coding job. Sure, you get far less cash at McDonald's than the larger amount of cash that you'd get at a coding job.
But, at least, you saved the cash to pay somebody to help you make a good resume.
Having a bad resume is very expensive. It costs you a lot of cash. No wonder you can't afford it.
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If you want to want to fix this on a free group video call with other new coders, DM me.

Hello. In the past 5 years I was physically ill and I was pretty much bedridden and unable to work. But recently I feel like I made enough recovery where I can get back to working again. I've also depleted my savings so I desperately need any job right now.
I was actually working in a different industry prior to getting sick but I don't think I can go back into that field for various reasons so I am looking to get back in the restaurant industry since I previously had years of experience working when I was young - cook (prep/line), dishwasher, server etc.
Currently I am only applying for entry level jobs such as dishwasher or prep cook jobs. I really do not care that I have to go back to minimum wage jobs. I've accepted that my life has completely changed and I'm willing to start over and I have no complaints.
Although most of my job applications get no response, I'm still getting interviews here and there.
But the problem is when I get to the interviews. They ask me about the gap in my work history, and I always tell them the truth - that I was sick for several years so I couldn't work but now I'm fully recovered. Then they always ask what was my illness, and I politely decline to tell them my medical history and explain again that I had health issues but now I have fully recovered and I'm able to work without assistance or accommodations. And every time, I always see the vibe immediately change and I can see they become disinterested and they start ending the interview. It almost feels like they get offended that I refuse to tell them why I was sick. But I don't want to reveal the health problem I had as I don't think that's relevant (also I think it could be illegal for them to ask that?). I think what's relevant is that I am not disabled and I am recovered and can work.
For example, today I just had a phone interview and the guy asked about the gap in my resume. I told him the usual, and right then and there he changed his tone and suddenly decided to end the interview, saying "Well, we're moving on, good luck" and just abruptly hung up. I was kinda surprised and upset because I thought it was rude. And now I realize all the in-person interviews probably would've ended like that too if it was a phone interview, they just couldn't abruptly cut it off because I was sitting in front of them.
Do I have to lie at this point? I don't want to lie because I am not a good liar. But now I'm starting to think that telling them I was in prison for 5 years might actually be better than saying I was sick for 5 years.
If anyone has any advice, I would greatly appreciate it. I just need to start working again.

Hello. In the past 5 years I was physically ill and I was pretty much bedridden and unable to work. But recently I feel like I made enough recovery where I can get back to working again. I've also depleted my savings so I desperately need any job right now.
I was actually working in a different industry prior to getting sick but I don't think I can go back into that field for various reasons so I am looking to get back in the restaurant industry since I previously had years of experience working when I was young - cook (prep/line), dishwasher, server, etc.
Currently I am only applying for entry level jobs such as dishwasher or prep cook jobs. I really do not care that I have to go back to minimum wage jobs. I've accepted that my life has completely changed and I'm willing to start over and I have no complaints.
Although most of my job applications get no response, I'm still getting interviews here and there.
But the problem is when I get to the interviews. They ask me about the gap in my work history, and I always tell them the truth - that I was sick for several years so I couldn't work but now I'm fully recovered. Then they always ask what was my illness, and I politely decline to tell them my medical history and explain again that I had health issues but now I have fully recovered and I'm able to work without assistance or accommodations. And every time, I always see the vibe immediately change and I can see they become disinterested and they start ending the interview. It almost feels like they get offended that I refuse to tell them why I was sick. But I don't want to reveal the health problem I had as I don't think that's relevant (also I think it could be illegal for them to ask that?). I think what's relevant is that I am not disabled and I am recovered and can work.
For example, today I just had a phone interview and the guy asked about the gap in my resume. I told him the usual, and right then and there he changed his tone and suddenly decided to end the interview, saying "Well, we're moving on, good luck" and just abruptly hung up. I was kinda surprised and upset because I thought it was rude. And now I realize all the in-person interviews probably would've ended like that too if it was a phone interview, they just couldn't abruptly cut it off because I was sitting in front of them.
Do I have to lie at this point? I don't want to lie because I am not a good liar. But now I'm starting to think that telling them I was in prison for 5 years might actually be better than saying I was sick for 5 years.
If anyone has any advice, I would greatly appreciate it. I just need to start working again.

Firstly, a bit of backstory:
I originally sought professional help because I'm transgender, but was denied treatment because I am depressed. I am depressed because I am transgender and getting absolutely no help.
My doctor diagnosed me with depression and started medicine for it. For the past two years I have taken said medicine. In those two years absolutely no progress for improvement with literally anything was made. Because nothing was working I was really suicidal every single day.
A few months back I just gave up. I decided to stop taking my medicine, figuring it'd make my mental health collapse and I'd actually just end it.
Now to present day:
My mental health got better. Turns out it was a misdiagnose by several doctors, and the ssri medications were causing serotonin syndrome in me, which resembled the symptoms of depression.
I am no longer suicidal, my social anxiety is gone, literally all my mental problems besides trauma and being trans are gone. I am genuinely mentally in the best state in the past 2 years.
But my life is completely destroyed. I had to drop out of high school because of my "depression", and high school is mandatory here. I lost all of my friends. I got alienated from most of my family.
I had really good grades before the anxiety caused by the medicine set in. I could have literally become a surgeon. Now I'll be lucky if my resume is good enough for me to flip burgers at McDonald's. I also have no money and I'm temporarily homeless.
My social skills deteriorated to basically nonexistant during those two years, I have like 3-6 friends/people I know. My body is covered in scars from self harm and I feel really ugly because of it. And most of my ambitions in life have been crushed.
I am really struggling to cope with this. Even though almost all my problems are solved, I feel like I have nothing left, like the damage is already done.
tldr: turns out i do not have mental health problems, the doctors just fucked me over for 2 years. now i am good mentally but my life was destroyed by it.

My friend (M50) is in some trouble. He’s in northern Washington, a bit outside Seattle. He and I have been apartment mates since around the start of covid, and he has been unemployed just as long. I let him move into my place partly to help him not be homeless during the pandemic and partly because I didn’t want to live alone during it. He has tried on and off to find work ever since without luck. He has some sort of mental disordeexecutive dysfunction that makes him quite anxious and depressed, but he does want to work. The resume gap is rough though. He has been cleaning and minding the apartment a bit for the whole time, and watching my pets when I travel etc. I got married at the end of 2023 however, and made him aware then that when the lease is up at the end of May that it will not be renewed,, and he would need to use that time to find work/housing. I want to help him get on his feet but I don’t know what to do. There's just about three weeks left and he's had no luck despite applying for multiple jobs every day. He has state-funded healthcare and has been in touch with mental health care but is not actively going to therapy or medicated, and is continuing to not have luck with jobs. Worse, his anxiety has become an unhealthy attachment and dependency, which obviously makes my partner uncomfortable and is straining our mental health as well. What can I do to help him? What are some resources he could look into? He has experience with inventory and medical supply, call centers, data entry, customer service, but even those have not taken him up on his applications. I worry he will hurt himself as time runs out, and I'm not sure what resources there are for the homeless in the area beyond 211 (which we know of and have tried reaching out to, and will continue to try reaching out to).

Hello, I am a newly graduated veterinarian. I would like to get a job as a medical coder. What should I do, what to study and how long will it take me to get a remote job, knowing that I am from outside the United States?

My mom 53(f) has been struggling with her health these past couple years and has nerve related impairments in her lower extremities. We currently have one of AetnaCVSHealth’s gold plans for insurance.
They require a referral to see specialists. Every. Single. Time. You would assume that after going all the way to your PCP to get a referral the first time, any follow ups recommended by the specialist should be okay. However, this company will deny follow up appointments even as little as a week or two later — reported as follow ups to the insurance company— if there is no referral. I will get charged a $10 copay, and the insurance will fail to alert the hospital that a referral is required for coverage, leaving me having to pay for the full appointment on top of my $10. Specialist visits can cost upwards of $700 an hour for neurologists. I can understand if there has been a lot of time between visits or the visit isn’t technically a follow up but its getting to the point where we cant even schedule to view her test results without obtaining a referral first from her PCP which is absurd. We will have prescriptions for things like physical therapy from a specialist and they will not be covered by insurance if we dont go to our PCP first to get a referral from her as well.
They also will deny coverage if your providers are out of network however, their entire catalogue of in network providers is incorrect on their site. Im talking 80-90% whether its listing disconnected phone numbers, listing doctors that no longer accept the insurance, listing doctors that no longer operate at the mentioned address, listing the incorrect name of the healthcare institution, and so forth. This can make it extremely difficult to even get the right referral in the first place because they usually want the exact doctoprovider listed on the referral. Any variances can result in them denying your claim and charging you full price after making your copay.
They also deny surgeries and procedures even when they fall into their guidelines on what is considered “medically necessary”. It was so bad that the bille coder we were working with at the hospital expressed that this was the only insurance company that consistently denied quality of life surgeries. She even expressed to me that they tried to deny someone who needed brain surgery and would suffer a terrible quality of life without surgery (essentially vegetable state) because it wasnt technically necessary for them to survive… like yes you’d survive i guess but to what end?
They have no regard for the quality of life of their insurance holders and are consistently looking for ways to deny claims. I was wondering if there was any way to sue them for using these malicious tactics in order to keep themselves from having to cover pricey medical bills even when they should be covered based on their own parameters.
To my knowledge, aetna and cvs merged due to them both struggling to stay afloat financially, but if this is hindering them from offering reasonable healthcare they should NOT be allowed to participate in the marketplace. I also wanted to emphasize that this is our second year with them and it wasn’t nearly as difficult to use them last year (even with the incessant referrals) as it is this year. They seem to deny every other claim this time around.
Thank you in advance to anyone who may take the time to read and/or respond to this.
Edit: grammar, readability, and clarification.