I was laid off twice in 3 months while working as an immigrant in the US. I'm still in survival mode.

I was laid off twice in 3 months while working as an immigrant in the US. I'm still in survival mode. Tanvi Pisal was laid off twice, both times without an H-1B visa. Tanvi Pisal This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Tanvi Pisal, a 29-year-old UX designer from India. She went through two layoffs within a year while working in the US. It has been edited for length and clarity.I've always seen the US as the land of opportunity.I grew up in Pune, a city in western India, where I earned my bachelor's degree in software engineering. After graduating, I worked in software, user experience, and interface design.Back in 2019, design was still a relatively new field in India. I saw much bigger opportunities in the US, especially in Silicon Valley, where I could work with brilliant minds and innovative technology. That's when I decided to apply to master's programs in the US. In the fall of 2021, I moved to California to pursue a degree related to human-computer interaction at San José State University.During my final year, I interned at a Bay Area healthcare tech startup that hired me after graduation.I was working on STEM OPT, which allowed me to work in the US for up to 3 years after graduating, and I hoped to stay longer on an H-1B visa. My company sponsored me, but I wasn't selected in the lottery. Back-to-back layoffsI could see that AI was disrupting SaaS companies like mine.So around June 2025, I anticipated the layoffs and started applying for other full-time roles. I thought I'd have more time, but I was laid off a few months later, in October.I aggressively applied for new roles, and in November, I received an offer for a product design position at a New York City recruiting company, where I'd be designing its mobile app. They asked me to relocate, and I did, even though they didn't offer relocation assistance. Pisal moved to NYC after being laid off from her role in the Bay Area. Tanvi Pisal I sold most of my furniture in San José, subleased my room, packed my life into five U-Haul boxes, and shipped them to New York.On short notice, I found a shared apartment in Newport, New Jersey. At $1,800 a month, it was all I could afford. I commuted an hour each way for 12-hour office shifts.My world turned upside down when, one day at the office, I was abruptly laid off just two weeks after starting. The company gave only vague reasons for the decision.I'd moved to New York just 15 days earlier. I couldn't understand why the company had me relocate from the West Coast to the East Coast only to lay me off.I remember walking out of the office that day and sitting on the snow-covered sidewalk, wondering whether coming to the US had been the right decision.Packing up my life into boxes twice in a monthI picked myself up and started returning the things I'd bought for my new life in New York while I still could.The only thing I couldn't return was my desk, which I sold to the person taking over my sublease. I told my roommates to use up the groceries I'd just bought.The whole ordeal — packing up my life twice in a month — cost me about $6,000.I flew back to California on December 25.My Hail Mary attemptAt that point, I thought, "The worst has happened." I'd lost everything. My STEM OPT was about to expire, and I had 60 days to figure out a way to stay in the US before I'd have to return to India.So I decided I might as well give it one last try.Back in California, I spent three hours each day on LinkedIn Easy Apply, then targeted applications before building AI-powered design projects to strengthen my portfolio.It paid off. I landed an interview on January 5. From that week on, I had at least two interviews each week.Finally, I interviewed for a UX designer role with a product team at a Big Tech company in Silicon Valley. After two interviews, they offered me a contract role in February. I couldn't believe it. I was so relieved.My nervous system has not recoveredAlthough I've settled into my new apartment in San José and am enjoying my new job, I still haven't recovered from the trauma of the back-to-back layoffs.I'm always scared. Every time I get an email or am called into an unscheduled meeting, I feel anxious. I need to know what it's about beforehand.I've decided to continue my studies on the side, enrolling in a Ph.D. program in business administration at Westcliff University, with a concentration in human-computer interaction. It allows me to stay in the US on a student visa.I don't really have a plan for the future right now, given how volatile the immigration situation is. I'm just taking it one day at a time, easing back into a routine and trying to live my life normally.Looking back at my journey, I wouldn't change a thing. The struggles have taught me so much. Read next Immigration Layoffs as told to More