Besides wearing a mask and socially distancing, constant anxiety and stress have become the new norm for Anna Taylor. Not only has the young Berliner been kept apart from family and friends, she's also been weighed down by the fear of contracting COVID-19 or losing her job.
"Everything combined was like a loss of identity, in a sense," explained Taylor. "I couldn't travel and see my family. My sister was going to get married, I had to postpone these important things. I lost that sense of community. I felt like I lost myself."
She's by no means alone. The effects of the pandemic on mental health are being felt across Germany – despite its position as the fourth largest global economy.
Psychiatrists, psychologists, and paediatricians across the country have voiced growing alarm that school closures, social restrictions, and other precautions are magnifying the fear, disruption and stress of the pandemic among Germany's youth population, raising the prospect of a future mental health crisis.
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More young Germans are struggling with their mental health during the current shutdown than during the first, according to preliminary research results published by Saarland University. Researchers have been monitoring 1,500 men and women for the past year to measure the psychological and social consequences of the pandemic.
Their life satisfaction has decreased significantly, while anxiety, stress and depression have increased. Unlike during the first lockdown, when participants initially reported that society was moving closer together, the same group now believes people have become more selfish and have moved further apart.
Young people were almost twice as likely to report adverse effects caused by a lack of structure, while more than half had their access to face-to-face treatment restricted – with mental health services moving online.
With curfews, closures and lockdowns in Germany set to drag through the spring or even into the summer, health professionals are growing increasingly concerned about the deteriorating mental state of young people, saying they are among the most badly affected by a world facing an uncertain future.
"People in their early 20s don't know what the future will bring, so it's a matter of how they can ever envision themselves in a world full of uncertainties," said clinical psychologist Giulia Borriello.
Many young people are turning to social media for support, as well as smartphone apps designed to help people manage depression. While the German government has recognized the impact this unprecedented period is having on people's wellbeing, many still consider mental health issues taboo and are reluctant to seek help.
Germany has been in national lockdown since mid-December. Chancellor Angela Merkel last week agreed to extend lockdown measures until March 28, with a roadmap for alleviating restrictions in areas with lower infection levels announced.