Ms Firdaus Nisha used to earn a good salary at a small environmental consulting firm in Kuala Lumpur, but now, more than a year after the pandemic started, she has slipped into the lower-income group.
She said her business, which had to shift its office and cut overheads, has effectively been in "cold storage" for much of this year.
"I used to think I am in the middle-income category, but now I have slipped into the B40 (lower-income group) category," Ms Nisha told The Straits Times.
Her firm's work is usually done with international clients and schools, but with borders mostly closed and schools shuttered, work is drying up.
Now that Malaysia's full lockdown has been extended indefinitely, the future looks bleak for Ms Nisha.
"I am already broke, so I am just thinking about how to survive for the next few months. If I start thinking (about finances), I would go into a panic," she said. "When (the lockdown) is extended indefinitely, we have nothing to look forward to."
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin announced on Sunday that the full lockdown, which is costing the country RM1 billion (S$324 million) a day, would be extended until daily Covid-19 cases drop to below 4,000.
That means millions of Malaysians will spend a third month under some form of lockdown. They were in a partial lockdown for much of last month, before the full lockdown began on June 1.
And with no end date given, Malaysians are speaking of the toll that the lockdown and pandemic are taking on their mental health, relationships and finances.
Mrs Elvina Fernandez said she understands the need to prolong the curbs due to the high number of cases every day, but is having "mixed feelings".
"I also wonder what will happen to all the people who are surviving on daily wages. Once (the pandemic) is over, what kind of community are we going to create?" the freelance writer told ST, adding that she imagines a post-pandemic society where poverty and social ills might be on the rise.
Mrs Fernandez, who left her job as an executive last year, initially wanted to return to the workforce after a couple of months' break, but she has been putting off her plans as Malaysia has spent much of this year dealing with high numbers of Covid-19 cases, a state of emergency, and various iterations of lockdown.
"Fortunately, for now, I have been able to survive despite not having a full-time job," she told ST.
Even those who are still employed are feeling the strain.
An oil and gas industry worker at an offshore platform, who wanted to be known only as Raj, said Covid-19 protocols mean that he is separated from his family for long periods. He works for four weeks and then has to quarantine for two weeks before returning home.
"I spend six weeks away from the family, and only get 10 days with them. We can't go anywhere when onshore," Mr Raj told ST. "There is no mental stability, and it is affecting my family and my relationship."
His income has also fallen by up to 70 per cent since the pandemic started. He lost a previous job at an oil field overseas, returned to Malaysia at the onset of the pandemic, and subsequently went for 11 months without work.
"When I heard about the extension, I just felt helpless," he said.
A communications executive and mother of two, who wanted to be known only as Amy, said: "Reduced physical activity impacts a healthy body and mind. It's even worse on kids, who are happy to sit with devices, but there are long-term effects to this.
"My heart goes out to those living in confined spaces."
