My iCloud storage was full, and I noticed my MacBook was backing up to iCloud, which I didn't know - we just thought we were using iCloud backup for our iPhones. So to free up space, I disconnected iCloud from my MacBook - when I did, everything saved on my desktop disappeared.
The issue is that iCloud was full, so these files weren't backed up - now they are just gone. They aren't in my deleted items folder and they aren't in iCloud.
I don't understand why disconnecting iCloud from my MacBook would permanently remove files that were saved on my desktop. Does anyone know if there is a way to restore files from the desktop in a situation like this?