As the economy continues to spiral out of control, people who have found themselves out of work are struggling to find employment amid a recession.

Mary O'Brien says things went south for her two years ago, when the Internet-based company she worked for laid her off and shortly after closed down. The 62-year-old Norwalk resident says she has been on and off unemployment and forced to collect food stamps.

O'Brien receives $910 a month from Social Security, but she says that amount does not even cover her rent. To make ends meet, O'Brien cut out luxury items, such as going out to eat, started doing odd jobs and even began sewing her own clothes.

"It's an absolute nightmare," she says. "You send out resumes by what seems like the thousands, and you never hear back."