All these uncertainties have been an added psychological burden, especially on young adults, a recent study published by the Indonesian Psychiatrists Association (PDSKJI) has shown.

Gladhys Elliona, 26, a writer and a postgraduate student from Yogyakarta, said she had been seeing a psychiatrist for a year now. She was diagnosed with generalized anxiety disorder, which is characterized by excessive worry about things in life. She said before the COVID-19 pandemic, she did not have to wait long to see her psychiatrist.

“I visit my psychiatrist once a month. Back then, there were less than 10 people waiting to see the psychiatrist. Now, during the pandemic, the line has gotten longer —20 to 30 people are there, waiting,” she said. “And more young people are there."

Prameswari, 23, not her real name, a Malang resident in East Java who juggles a job at a local human rights foundation and several side jobs, said she often struggled with anxiety, especially when dealing with heavy workloads. But she had no other option in making ends meet. She mostly sleeps it off, sometimes all weekend, to ease her mind.

Like many Indonesians, Prameswari never sought help from mental health professionals even though she felt her anxiety growing in the first months of the pandemic. She often found herself bursting into tears.

One day, her husband had to take her to the hospital because she felt intense chest pains.

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