Getting laid off begins a process, which starts off with you feeling "relieved" sometimes, or "Free" from a bad situation. At this stage, you have a high opinion of your value to a company and view yourself as a fully employed desirable contributor to any company.
This lasts a few days and most decide to take a few days off before starting the job search, but the truth is they actually are hoping for the phone to ring with a job offer from friends or some other miracle to occur so they don't have to actually apply for jobs.
Of course, this doesn't happen and the inevitable is now necessary, where a resume must be assembled and sent out. The pride of a person takes a hit this day, as they realize they're actually in need of a job and have joined the unemployed seeking a job.
The job search begins. Expectations of dozens of suitable jobs available with little competition begin to fade as reality sets in that there aren't dozens of suitable jobs available, at least within your area. You find a handful of jobs you are interested in, and so the resumes are sent off. Ambitious go getter types will even make a phone call or send an email in addition to the resumes.
Days pass, then a week, then two.
Between the rejections and possibly one interview, you begin to see how this isn't going to be as easy as you assumed and the pride you had comes into conflict with your experience at job hunting, where employers aren't beating down the door to hire you.
At this point, you realize you will have to work hard to find a job, compete, strive. The pride takes another hit, and you feel less like a "Fully employed contributing member of society."
For many, this process gradually swirls downward as they come to the ugly realization that they had the best job they could ever get, and in the open job market, their skillset won't get them an equivalent job in today's economy.
Which is why they held that job, and did not find a way to improve it. And so goes the process, where millions of Americans slowly but surely fade off into the long term unemployed mass of 40 million plus, reliant on food stamps, government assistance, or a "Mcjob" dubbed "The gig economy" by economists, which is another word for formerly high paid people now delivering pizza or stocking shelves at Wal Mart during the night.
Welcome to America 2.0, for most of you this will not be a pleasant experience.