I went from making $200,000 a year to using SNAP. Here’s what I wish people knew about government assistance.

• Carli Michelle Wright worked at a high-power law firm and made hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
• She quit for the sake of her mental and physical health.
• While working part-time between careers, she turned to SNAP for assistance.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with meditation teacher Carli Michelle Wright. It has been edited for length and clarity.

During my second year of law school in Chicago in 2018, I discovered meditation, breathwork, and yoga as a way to help me be productive and study; I believe it helped cure my anxiety and depression.

I started my job as a lawyer in January 2021. I went to work at what was, at the time, one of the largest law firms in the entire world. It was a very prestigious position, and my starting salary was $200,000. It was the most money I had ever seen, and no one in my family had ever seen that much either.

The job took a toll on me mentally and physically

I worked that job for a year, but it was really stressful. I worked 80-hour weeks and pulled all-nighters a couple of times a week. It was during the pandemic, so we were still at home. It was isolating.

I started to feel my depression and anxiety creep back up, and I knew I had to get rid of it. I couldn’t risk my sanity for the sake of money.

I moved to a smaller firm and made a little less, but I was still working 60-hour weeks. I ended up leaving the firm and went to a meditation retreat in Spain that changed my life. I had a groundbreaking spiritual experience there that told me to let go of this career.

I decided I needed a pivot

I came back to Chicago and lived off my savings and credit cards for several months as I tried to start a business teaching meditation, breathwork, and yoga. I still had my apartment lease and all my living expenses, as well as student loans.

I moved out of my apartment when it became too expensive and lived on friends’ couches. I worked as a receptionist at an office and would sometimes sleep in the office overnight. Eventually, I moved to Los Angeles to live with a friend and worked at yoga studios there part-time.

I turned to government assistance to pay for food

I was making about $25 an hour part-time, but it wasn’t enough to support me. I turned to SNAP for help with getting food. I was on it in Illinois for about a year, and then reapplied in California. You must renew it every six months; they will verify your income to ensure you remain eligible.

I was on it for about a year in California. Los Angeles is obviously very expensive, and I was living with a bunch of friends at the time to keep costs low.

I am no longer using SNAP benefits, but it helped me through a tough transition

I felt shame at first because society looks down on assistance. But after thinking about it, I realized that I’ve had a job since I was 15 years old, and I’ve paid into this my whole working life. I’m 34, so it’s been quite some time. I shouldn’t feel guilt or shame. When people fall on hard times, they should have a safety net to help and support them, and lift them back up to where they want to be at equilibrium.

Once that one financial piece was taken care of, it took a load off me, both physically and emotionally. It’s supposed to be uplifting, not demeaning, and to be treated like you’re disposable and undeserving — people deserve to eat.

This January, I got a part-time job teaching children’s wellness at a TK through 8th-grade school. I teach them mindfulness and emotional regulation. I am also an entrepreneur, with my dream job of coaching meditation, breathwork, and yoga. I am no longer on SNAP, but I am grateful it was there when I needed it and helped get me where I am.

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