It’s not always a breakdown that tells you something’s wrong. Sometimes, it’s something very small that you don’t even notice at first. You wake up anxious about the day ahead, your stomach twists before every phone call, you can’t sleep through the night.

You tell yourself it’s just work stress or exam pressure — everyone feels this way. You scroll a bit, smoke a bit, maybe binge on something you like. You cope, and you keep going. It’s just life, right?

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Wrong.

It is just a population trapped in a lifestyle that has normalised mental health issues, turned it into a shareable meme or a clickable reel, a passing joke as you sit with the same gang of colleague-turned-friends discussing how bad life is, and simply not doing anything about it.

According to a 2024 Lancet study, over 1 in 4 Indians between 18 and 29 show symptoms of anxiety or depression, while the National Mental Health Survey found that nearly 70% of them never seek help.

Professionals in their 20s and 30s report high-functioning anxiety — they perform well, meet deadlines, even smile through it — but carry a constant hum of unease underneath. Students show rising signs of chronic stress and insomnia even without major academic setbacks.

Underneath the “I’m fine” routine is a chronic state of mental overload. India’s young adults are quietly burning out, and not because of some dramatic crisis, but because their minds never get to switch off.

We are running on no gas, and refusing to fill the tank.