Burgess, 22, was one of thousands of young people in their 20s forced to move home during the pandemic - a quarter of young people in that age group who had moved away had returned to live home with parents because they had no choice.

New research from the Australian Institute of Family Studies reveals young women were particularly affected by lockdown. They felt lonely, socially isolated, they had lower levels of motivation and found it hard to study.

Institute lead researcher Lisa Mundy says society might have moved on from the pandemic but those in their early 20s are still doing it tough - and are rarely considered in policy decisions.

"This is such an important life stage, studying, finding employment. It's when young people find their feet," she says.

"The pandemic was a big disruptive event and we need to help those young people bounce back to navigate whatever life brings."

While one in five of the young people surveyed said they found spending more time with their parents was "difficult" or "not beneficial" and one in 10 said they couldn't get support or help from families, Burgess said her mother was brilliant.

"It felt weird going back to living with my mum and returning to my old role as a child but she treated me very much like an adult. I was extremely fortunate. A lot of people did not have as safe a space to return to," she said.

Burgess remembers how tough it was to negotiate breaking her lease, getting her bond back, losing her hospitality job and having no idea whether government support would help her.

"I had to make the really tough decision to move back to Bega. It was all very stressful and very anxiety-inducing. These were big world problems when I was so young," she says.

When she eventually came back to Canberra to finish her studies, she was locked down and alone.

"It was disgusting," she said.

ANU Students' Association President Ben Yates says students and young people are consistently excluded from policy and welfare decisions.

"Young people who don't get financial support from their parents are especially vulnerable. In the present cost of living crisis, this is even more acute," he says.

And the CEO of YWCA Canberra Frances Crimmins says those young women returning home may feel greater impacts later in life, particularly around housing. The YWCA conducted research with young women aged 16-34 in 2021. It showed that more than half the cohort were spending more than 30 per cent of their income on rent - some even spending more than 50 per cent.

"We need to find solutions urgently and we call on all levels of government to implement policies and support incentives to address the problem."