One of the government's biggest moves to help individuals during the economic crisis has been the extension of unemployment benefits. But as the recession drags on, now even those extensions are running out for many -- bringing with it a whole new level of economic stress.

How are people coping when the unemployment checks dry up? For some it means hard choices, like dipping into their retirement savings, selling the family car or moving in with their parents.

Many people find that unemployment benefits aren t even enough to pay the bills -- laid-off workers receive on average $295.05 a week, according to the Department of Labor -- but it definitely helps them get by.

Yet, as of April, almost half of all laid off workers collecting state unemployment insurance exhausted their benefits, the highest rate since records were first kept in 1948, according to National Employment Law Project (NELP). Furthermore, many job seekers are taking longer to find work. In April, unemployed people needed an average of 21 weeks to secure a job compared with fewer than 17 weeks in April 2006, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Fortunately, unemployment benefits last a while before running out. Up until mid-2008, benefits in most states ran up to 26 weeks. But thanks to a 13-week extension in July which became 20 weeks in November (as well as another 13 weeks for states with an unemployment rate of 6% or more for more than three months), those who get laid off can qualify for up to 59 weeks of benefits. Additionally, when President Barack Obama signed the stimulus plan in February, it enabled the federal government to pay for extended benefits of up to 20 more weeks, bringing the potential maximum of jobless benefits up to 79 weeks.

Read what Anastasia Pleasant and eight others are enduring while looking for work.

Not everyone can qualify for the maximum amount, however. Each state has a formula that calculates how many weeks of benefits an unemployed worker is entitled to, based in part on the state s unemployment rate and an individual s work history and earnings, says Rick McHugh, staff attorney with NELP. And in many cases, working part time may disqualify a person from receiving benefits.

SmartMoney.com spoke with unemployed workers who have seen their benefits run out. Here's what they say they're doing to make ends meet:

MONET MERCER: Dilemma over the car.

Age: 30

Location: Dallas, Texas

Previous Job: Property manager for a commercial real estate company

Unemployed Since: November 2008

Jobless Benefits: Has one check left

When Mercer was laid off, she assumed unemployment benefits would keep her afloat until she found her next job. But then the Texas Workforce Commission informed her that she wouldn t qualify for the maximum term of unemployment because she had moved to Texas (from Washington, D.C.) only 14 months prior. In total, she qualified for 27 weeks of benefits, with the last check coming at the beginning of June, she says. Mercer's parents have been paying her rent; she s depleted her retirement account; and she s been using the majority of her unemployment to pay for her car insurance and her bills. Mercer says that she needs to hold onto her car because of the long driving distances in Dallas and in order to do that she will step up her job search to include part-time work. Mercer has just one credit card -- but the issuer is sending her to collections for not paying the bill. There isn t anything left over to put into savings because there are times like now when I have $30 left until next week, she says.

EDWIN DUTERTE: A move back to mom and dad.

Age: 39

Location: San Jose, Calif.

Previous Job: Construction lender with a bank

Unemployed Since: January 2008

Jobless Benefits: Expired three months ago

Duterte at his peak was overseeing construction deals of $5 million to $30 million, he says. Having worked up the ranks in the real estate world for some 20 years, previous stints included a position as construction lender at Wells Fargo (WFC) in 2007 and investment analyst of multifamily housing at Freddie Mac from 1999 to 2003. But in January 2008, as real estate was starting to slow, Duterte says his last employer laid off one-fifth of its staff. His unemployment benefits ended in February, forcing him to give up his rental apartment and move in with his parents. He s been living off of his savings and his 401(k) and says he has $200 left in his bank account. To get back on his feet, Duterte says he networks on SlipSquad.com, a national pink slip party news site, and organizes his own pink slip parties in northern and southern California, where unemployed people meet to network and find jobs.

DONNA D AMBROSIO: I m trying to stay positive.

Age: 32

Location: Farmingdale, N.Y.

Previous Job: Statistical analyst at an advertising agency

Unemployed Since: July 2008

Jobless Benefits: Has two more checks left

SmartMoney first met D Ambrosio at Monster.com (MWW)career fair in March where she was hoping to land her next job. Unfortunately, she's had little luck, she says, and as her unemployment comes to an end she s applying anywhere that s hiring, including a local bagel shop and retail stores at a nearby mall. This, however, isn t D Ambrosio's first encounter with unemployment. In August 2007 she says she was let go from a mortgage company, she says. In February 2008 D Ambrosio gave up the apartment she rented and moved in with her parents. This prior experience with joblessness has been her saving grace, D Ambrosio says. She spends only one-third of each unemployment check on her monthly car payments and gas and plans to give up the car when her lease ends in a month. D Ambrosio says she s also using a portion of her benefits to pay for a 30-credit business administration certificate program at Nassau Community College, which she feels will help her stand out at job interviews. I think it s also going to show that I haven t just been sitting around all this time, she says.

THOMAS GREGOIRE: Planning on couch surfing.

Age: 53

Location: Concord, Calif.

Previous Job: Commercial sales and leasing broker at a commercial real estate company

Unemployed Since: December 2008

Jobless Benefits: None

Gregoire says he was one of just three commercial brokers working in the company s local office, but on New Year s Eve the company laid him off along with one of his colleagues, he says. Because the company hired him in May 2008 as an independent contractor and paid him on commission, Gregoire doesn't qualify for unemployment benefits. He's exhausted his savings and 401(k) so at the end of May he plans to move out of his apartment and start couch surfing at friends homes until he can get back on his feet. Gregoire's car and vacation property have been repossessed by banks, he says, but Homeland Security hired him last month for short-term contract jobs at airports and ports. Gregoire says he s also received certification to provide elder care, he says, and he took out a college loan to get a degree in health-care administration -- an industry he hopes to join soon.

ANASTASIA PLEASANT: "Something needs to happen soon."

Age: 47

Location: Monmouth County, N.J.

Previous Job: Photo editor at a custom publisher and marketing company

Unemployed Since: April 2008

Jobless Benefits: Expired two months ago

Pleasant says she was laid off in April 2008 -- along with more than half her colleagues. She filed for unemployment benefits immediately and found work as a freelancer to make ends meet. But in March she received her last unemployment check -- and she has only two freelance clients now. Her husband, 40, works as an estate manager, overseeing contractors on a private property. His salary covers their mortgage. To pay for their other expenses, the couple has been dipping into their savings account, although neither of them have yet to touch their IRAs. Should they find themselves in a financial situation where the mortgage can t be paid, Pleasant says she ll turn to her $75,000 home equity line of credit. (The bank hasn t cut their credit line yet, she says.) In the meantime, Pleasant is trying to find work. She says she's been attending industry networking meetings and touching base with former colleagues, hoping to find her next steady job -- and steady paycheck.

NIKKI MAXWELL: From Whole Foods to the food bank.

Age: 40

Location: Los Angeles, Calif.

Previous Job: Grant writer at a charter school

Unemployed Since: September 2008

Jobless Benefits: None

Maxwell worked as an independent contractor for a local charter school for two and a half years, writing grants and helping it expand. But in September 2008 she says the school faced budget cuts and she was laid off. Suddenly no one had the money to pay me to do what I do, says Maxwell, adding that she didn't qualify for unemployment benefits an independent contractor. Nor was this the first time her family has come into hardship. Maxwell's husband Bill, 41, who is also an independent contractor writing scripts for videogames, couldn t find work for about six months in 2008. I certainly didn t expect this in my stage of my life, Maxwell says. I had a very stable career. I was the one in my marriage with a regular job. The couple has three children, ages 3, 7 and 9. To make ends meet they removed their youngest from day care; depleted their 401(k), which had about $10,000; and stopped shopping at Whole Foods (WFMI), opting for a local food bank instead. Maxwell says her father has been pitching in to help pay their rent, but the family doesn t have health insurance -- and hardly any savings left.

GEORGE ANDERSON: We wouldn t have had a Christmas if it wasn t for credit cards.

Age: 48

Location: Redding, Conn.

Previous Job: Regional field manager at a retail book distributor

Unemployed Since: May 2008

Jobless Benefits: Expired two weeks ago

When his employer filed for bankruptcy in May 2008, Anderson says he was left jobless and without health insurance for himself and his family, he says. Anderson signed up his children, ages 3 and 11, for a state health insurance plan that costs $50 a month in premiums, but says he and his wife, 45, decided to forgo coverage because Cobra was too expensive. But after his wife was rushed to the hospital with pneumonia, Anderson says he began visiting AmeriCares, which offers free health care to low-income uninsured adults in Connecticut. To pay for the mortgage, Anderson says his wife found a job at a day-care center, which also offers free care for their three-year-old. He says they ve depleted their savings and get some help from friends and family to cover everyday expenses. The Andersons got rid of their land line, opting to keep their two cellphones. They also canceled their private garbage service and now drive to the nearest dump. Anderson says they ve been racking up credit-card debt, in part to replace their broken hot-water heater and to buy Christmas gifts for their children.

SHARI WILSON: Doing a bit of everything that s legal.

Age: 39

Location: Hampton, Va.

Previous Job: Retail sales manager for Virginia-based newspaper

Unemployed Since: February 2008

Jobless Benefits: Expired in mid-January

Wilson says she was one of more than 20 people who were laid off by her former company as the newspaper s ad revenues declined. Since then I ve been doing a little bit of everything that s legal, she says. I completely gave up on advertising and marketing because so many of my friends in the field have gotten laid off. Wilson says she s applied at Target (TGT), Wal-Mart (WMT) and Home Depot (HD) for any available position. Her husband, 39, works as a firefighter and his income covers their mortgage. Wilson sold all her jewelry (except her wedding band) to pay for groceries and bills, and started freelancing. She wiped out her 401(k) before her layoff when her uninsured father-in-law became ill. Wilson's husband s 401(k) remains untouched, but they ve gone through their savings. They have three children, ages 3, 14 and 19, and luckily her oldest son received a full scholarship to attend college this fall, she says. As for the youngest son, Wilson took him out of day care and now watches after him herself.

RICHARD GEESLIN: Running through retirement savings.

Age: 61

Location: Austin, Texas

Previous Job: Office manager, salesperson and equipment installer for a small business that sold home entertainment systems

Unemployed Since: May 2008

Jobless Benefits: None

The day that Geeslin began work at his former employer he says he was informed that he wouldn t receive health insurance or any benefits. So it came as no surprise when he -- the only employee at the company -- was laid off without severance. Then came the real shock: Geeslin says he couldn t qualify for unemployment benefits because his employer had listed him as an independent contractor. Over the past year, he s been using his retirement fund -- a mixture of savings accounts, CDs and stocks -- to pay for his mortgage and everyday expenses. (He hasn t touched his 401(k), which he started in 2001 and holds about $22,000.) Geeslin says he s avoided credit-card debt and he doesn t have a spouse or children to support. Financially it s a good thing, but mentally you re out here on your own, he says. To make some money, Geeslin's been giving private tennis lessons, something he says he did full time from the late 70s until the 90s.