Hello!

So I was recently laid off from my Software developer job due to COVID. I've always considered myself a solid programmer and my performance reviews showed as much, but in my day to day I rarely had to solve complex algorithmic problems. As my luck would have it, complex algorithmic problems are the main gatekeepers for the next job. Needless to say, I am very out of practice.. I got a Bachelors in computer science, so I know all the abstract concepts but when I go to implement some of the Medium questions(and admittiedly a couple Easy ones), I find myself sitting there for a couple hours banging my head against my keyboard long after my timer of 45 minutes expired. I feel like I am wasting my time in a situation where I can't afford to waste it. I only have so much money saved up and this contributes to my anxiety about the situation. So my question is, when do you know it's time to give up on a question and start processing the Solution/Discussions? When/if i do give up, what is the best strategy to actually LEARN how to beat the problem as opposed to memorizing the solution?

I can't even begin to express how demoralizing it is to have worked in the industry for 6+ years and then fail over and over again at the MAIN thing needed to get another job. Any practice advice? Will this feeling of dread go away?