Outlook Deleted IMAP Emails

Windows 10, Office 365, Outlook version with that.

I was on my computer yesterday in Outlook and looking at a working Gmail address set up in Outlook.  Suddenly ALL the emails under that address disappeared leaving only the headers/labels, which I don’t understand how that happened.  I did NOTHING to cause that.   I checked with Google and was told the emails were unrecoverable.  Somehow Outlook destroyed a years worth of financial, contact, healthcare, and other topics I keep as email records.  Any thoughts out there that would cause this?  Outlook support has been useless since I can’t reach a human to speak to and their “assistant” doesn’t have this problem

in their database.  After getting over the anger and rage, I am dumping Outlook as a mail handler; it can’t be trusted.  And NO ONE else has access to that email account and the password is high level.

Thank you.