I've been on this project for almost three months now.

I'm 25, freelance graphic designer/content maker, based in Khon Kaen. I really work alone — no regular boss. I have a recurring client and two project teammates — one does the website and one manages content. We're a tiny team, met once to eat thick-broth noodle soup in front of the campus. At 3:30 p.m. we split up. Super simple.

At first I thought it'd be fine. It's just promo sheets and social posts. They said the budget's small but to try different styles, and I wanted the portfolio and a review so I took it. Once we started, the problem was the delivery times and the brief/story kept changing so so much, like seriously I was confused. I couldn't tell which version was the final. People kept suggesting edits, comments came in scattered commands, change here then say don’t change it, decide on a new direction. Plus they message late at night, like past 10 p.m., sometimes 1:30 a.m., sending files saying change the font, add this photo. I can be flexible, but it happened so often I barely slept some nights — tossing and turning with a plastic cup of coffee by my bed. I did that continuously for about two weeks T_T

What stuck with me was they screenshot the template I designed and sent it to the page owner. The page owner asked, “Who designed this?” and the teammate replied, “I did it.” Didn’t tag me, didn’t say it was a team. I was... silent. Totally confused. Next morning I asked, “Yesterday you sent the template to the client and typed it like that?” He said, “Oh, I was in a hurry, typo.” Okay, I could accept that, but after that some works were adjusted from my designs and credited to someone else as the main creator. I'm not trying to be petty about credit, but it felt like my efforts were invisible. I’m a freelancer, no company or big brand — can't I get even a little credit? Or am I overthinking it?

Division of work and money is... sigh. It seemed clear when we first talked, but as we went on there were constant out-of-scope tasks: redesign old posts, make A/B versions for all channels, make special sizes for campaigns. One day it’s “one more thing please,” next day “add one more”. I kept accepting because I was scared of losing the job, wanted to keep a good image. But when it came time to split money, they said the client paid late or the website cost had to be covered first. I got only a tiny fraction compared to the time I spent. Not worth it anymore. But I don't dare tell them to stop — afraid of ruining relationships or future projects. If I cut them off now I might lose my network in the Khon Kaen freelance scene, which is already small. It’s so uncertain and it makes me anxious.

Also they like saying “people who respond quickly get continuous work” and lure me into staying as an advisor, but there's no salary, no membership fee, nothing. I'm not asking to be an employee, but if you want quick turnaround you should at least have compensation or a clear agreement. Not just ask me to do things for free then leave them hanging. I'm handling two to three projects a month and some months I barely have time to rest. I've had stretches of eating instant noodles and spicy dip for three days straight lolol not literally that extreme but you get the idea.

Sometimes I get so tired I think of changing how I work: set up a clear task board, limit to two rounds of revisions, charge extra for extra tasks, or politely end the relationship and ask a neutral person to mediate the work and payment split. But I'm scared they'll see me as difficult, not flexible, or worse I'll lose my network. I'm 25 — can I push back against older or more connected people? If I keep tolerating this I don't know how I'll survive. I'm so torn and confused.

Sorry if this is messy, it really is a tangled situation. Freelance friends or anyone who's been through this, what should I do? Should I set new boundaries and tell them directly, or slowly distance myself? And if I tell them directly, how do I say it politely but clearly? I want to keep the friendship but I also don't want my life to be too exhausting. What do I do? Huh, right?