It's hard escaping NEETdom even if you want to

Graduated HS in 2017 and basically have nothing to show for it. Until 6 months ago when I started a certificate program that qualifies me to work in a certain field. I just completed the program this month. Nothing special but for me it was a pretty big achievement. Now I'm looking for work and... you all probably know how that goes. An unimpressive resume with lots of gaps. I've been advised that I'll need to provide at least two references. Two references? I barely talk to two people on a regular basis. I have one, from the shelter that I volunteered at, and they barely even know me. I've barely existed in the world as a person for almost a decade. And how tf do I explain why the last time I had a job was 2018? And the thing is, I'm a good worker. My standards are insanely high and I work my fucking ass off. Every step of my schooling and then my work placement has been so fucking difficult. I struggle with things that wouldn't even occur to most people could be a struggle. But I've gotten through all of it somehow. But it doesn't even matter! All they see is an empty resume and a lack of connections. The emptiness of the last 8 years is like a black hole. I'm not saying none of this is my fault. I've made so many bad choices. But goddamn, I hate people acting like it's all so easy to fix. Crawling out of this hole that I've been in for the past however many years has been excruciating every step of the way. If I can't get a job in this field I genuinely don't know what I'll do.