> I got my Master's in the US in the late 2000s and was gainfully employed there for a few years...
>
> Ideally, I would prefer to go back to the US...because I actually was happy there.
There's a lot of really helpful replies here that I can't add to but this stood out to me. I think maybe you should focus on what you can do in Germany or remaining closer by in Europe. Life was easier in the late 2000s in the US than today, and you may be looking back with some rose tinted glasses thinking if you can just go back to that place in the past when you were happier things will resolve themselves. But it may not work out that way, and it may add a lot of extra complication and work to try to make it happen (especially during this economic downturn), that will take time away from you doing other things, only to potentially end up quite disappointed.
There's a lot of really helpful replies here that I can't add to but this stood out to me. I think maybe you should focus on what you can do in Germany or remaining closer by in Europe. Life was easier in the late 2000s in the US than today, and you may be looking back with some rose tinted glasses thinking if you can just go back to that place in the past when you were happier things will resolve themselves. But it may not work out that way, and it may add a lot of extra complication and work to try to make it happen (especially during this economic downturn), that will take time away from you doing other things, only to potentially end up quite disappointed.