Out of nowhere my messaging just stopped working, and I think I got hit with a restriction. All my work chats and family group threads are just gone, and I am completely locked out of everything. How do people even deal with this and get their access back without losing their minds?

Back up your chat history regularly to a cloud service or your email, because once the account is gone, those messages do not come back. Losing client conversations and important media is sometimes worse than the ban itself, and there is no way to recover them afterward.

Getting a WhatsApp account banned or suspended is a proper headache, and figuring out how to avoid them in the first place saves a ton of stress, there is a solid read on the topic right here https://gologin.com/blog/whatsapp-account-banned-or-suspended/ . The article goes through the main reasons these blocks happen, things like mass messaging unknown numbers, using modified versions of the app, or getting reported by too many people in a short window. It also covers what steps to take when you are already locked out and how to reach the support team with a proper appeal, so you are not just sitting there refreshing your screen waiting for a miracle.