Now I know that seems to be a 'duh!", but you are now in a position to chronicle the hardships many are going through, to find and write about solutions to problems, DIY projects, scrounging materials, getting by with less, and may well make more in the process. Even the trials of hunting for 'lesser work' to add to the income, and there are a few. Expect setbacks, but results, up or down, are meat for a column.
There is a sympathetic audience out there, people who are in the same boat, and also looking for solutions and a sympathetic ear.
This could grow into a column in print or a blog on the web, and cutting in with any part time work you do elsewhere, the adjustments, the trials, tribulations, and triumphs of 'getting by' are the sort of reading that many will flock to, especially if there is positive advice for others in the same boat. From recipies to fix-its, to dealing with working a different and more menial job, the things you can do to bring in a little more money become fodder for your keyboard.
I have been there.
Worked the same place for 16 years, bringing in an average of a quarter million per year (huge in the market and local economy at the time) for a small company over that time and selling work for other employees as well.
One slowdown in the market, and I was out the door because I was at the top of the pay scale. Thanks, bye, no gold watch, no severance pay.
Within a year, I was back in the saddle, with my own company.
You can do this, and that seemingly insurmountable peak is conquered one step at a time--and not without setbacks. If you're freelance, you can sell your material to anyone willing to listen, you just have to write it.
Start now, today, where you are, because your reaction to the transition from a full-time gig is entirely normal. It's a bummer.
But don't stop there, grab those bootstraps, drag yourself to the keyboard, and write about it. You can edit it later. Keep a journal.
Let their loss be your gain.
You have prevailed before (you transferred/went back to school), you can do it again, and there are a lot of people out there who could use a tip or two, or just the knowledge they are not alone.
Just send me a copy (autographed, of course!) when the book comes out.
Now, if you are so inclined, ask God for strength and guidance, (I'll ask Him for you), and get cracking!