Kadang-kadang saya merasa stres karena konflik batin.

Sometimes I feel stressed because of inner conflict.

Breakdown of Kadang-kadang saya merasa stres karena konflik batin.

• saya: I
• karena: because
• merasa: to feel
• kadang-kadang: sometimes
• stres: stressed
• konflik batin: the inner conflict

Questions & Answers about Kadang-kadang saya merasa stres karena konflik batin.

What is the difference between kadang-kadang and kadang? Do I have to repeat the word?

Kadang-kadang means sometimes. It’s a common example of reduplication in Indonesian to show repeated / occasional action.

• kadang-kadang = sometimes (standard, very common)
• kadang = sometimes (shortened, more casual in speech)

Both are correct. In writing, kadang-kadang looks more complete and neutral.
You’ll also see kadang used alone, especially in informal contexts, without changing the meaning much.

Can I change the position of kadang-kadang in the sentence?

Yes. Indonesian word order is flexible for adverbs of frequency like kadang-kadang. All of these are acceptable and natural:

• Kadang-kadang saya merasa stres karena konflik batin.
• Saya kadang-kadang merasa stres karena konflik batin.
• Saya merasa stres kadang-kadang karena konflik batin. (less common, but still understandable)

The most natural are usually:

• Kadang-kadang saya merasa … (adverb at the start), or
• Saya kadang-kadang merasa … (adverb after the subject).

How do Indonesians pronounce kadang-kadang and stres?

Roughly:

• kadang-kadang → kah-dahng kah-dahng

  • ka like car (without the r),
  • dang with ng like sing.

• stres → stres (very close to English stress, but shorter and flatter)

  • one syllable, no schwa: not “struh-ress”, just stres.

Indonesian vowels are generally short and pure, without English-style diphthongs.

Why is it spelled stres, not stress like in English?

Indonesian often borrows English words but adapts the spelling to Indonesian phonetics:

• English stress → Indonesian stres
• English problem → Indonesian problem or problema (depending on style)
• English film → Indonesian film (same spelling, but Indonesian pronunciation)

So stres is the standard Indonesian spelling. Using stress with double s at the end looks foreign or incorrect in standard Indonesian.

Do I always need merasa before stres? Can I just say Saya stres?

Both are correct, with slightly different nuance:

• Saya stres.
  Literally: I am stressed.
  stres acts like an adjective (predicate). This is very common, especially in speech.

• Saya merasa stres.
  Literally: I feel stressed.
  This emphasizes the subjective feeling. It can sound just a bit more explicit or reflective.

In your sentence, saya merasa stres is quite natural and sounds slightly more descriptive or thoughtful. But in everyday conversation, Saya lagi stres or Gue stres banget is very common.

What is the pattern merasa + adjective? Can I use it with other adjectives?

Yes. Merasa means to feel, and it’s commonly used with adjectives:

• merasa sedih – to feel sad
• merasa senang – to feel happy
• merasa lelah – to feel tired
• merasa bersalah – to feel guilty
• merasa marah – to feel angry

Your sentence follows that pattern:

• merasa stres – to feel stressed

You can think of it as: merasa + adjectival word/phrase describing your state.

What does karena mean exactly, and are there alternatives?

Karena means because.

Common alternatives:

• sebab – also because, slightly more formal/literary in some contexts.
• gara-gara – because, but with a negative or blaming nuance, like “because of” in a complaining way:
  • Saya stres gara-gara tugas ini. – I’m stressed because of this assignment. (complaining/blaming tone)

In your sentence, karena is neutral and appropriate:

• … merasa stres karena konflik batin.
  = … feel stressed because of inner conflict.

Is the word order stres karena konflik batin fixed, or can I say it another way?

The basic order is:

• [adjective / state] + karena + [reason]

So:

• Saya merasa stres karena konflik batin. – I feel stressed because of inner conflict.

If you want to rephrase, you’d usually expand the reason part, not change the core order. For example:

• Saya merasa stres karena ada konflik batin dalam diri saya.
  – I feel stressed because there is inner conflict within myself.
• Saya merasa stres karena konflik batin yang saya alami.
  – I feel stressed because of the inner conflict that I’m experiencing.

But stres karena konflik batin itself is already perfectly natural and clear.

What does konflik batin literally mean? Is it a common expression?

Literally:

• konflik – conflict
• batin – inner self / the inner, spiritual, or emotional side of a person

So konflik batin is inner conflict, conflict within oneself.
Yes, it’s a very common expression in Indonesian, often used in:

• everyday speech,
• religious or spiritual talk,
• psychology-related contexts,
• novels, movies, and songs.

It has a slightly introspective tone, like you’re struggling inside yourself.

What is the difference between batin, hati, and perasaan?

They overlap in meaning, but with different nuances:

• batin
  – inner self, inner being, spiritual/psychological interior
  – more abstract and sometimes more literary or spiritual
  – e.g. konflik batin (inner conflict), ketenangan batin (inner peace)

• hati
  – literally “liver,” but very often used like “heart” in English (emotion, conscience)
  – common in idioms and emotional language
  – e.g. sakit hati (heartbroken / deeply hurt), baik hati (kind-hearted)

• perasaan
  – feelings, emotions
  – more concrete as “feelings”
  – e.g. melukai perasaan (to hurt someone’s feelings), mengungkapkan perasaan (to express feelings)

So konflik batin focuses on the inner self or soul-level conflict, not just a temporary feeling.

Is Kadang-kadang saya merasa stres karena konflik batin formal, informal, or neutral?

It’s neutral and suitable in many contexts:

• talking to friends
• writing in a journal
• explaining your feelings to a counselor
• writing a reflective essay

The main reason is the use of saya, which is the polite/neutral I.
If you change saya to aku or gue, you shift to more informal styles:

• Kadang-kadang aku merasa stres karena konflik batin. (informal, but still polite)
• Kadang-kadang gue stres karena konflik batin. (very informal, Jakarta-style slang; also drops merasa).

What is the difference between saya and aku here?

Both mean I / me, but with different levels of formality:

• saya
  – polite, neutral, commonly used with strangers, in formal settings, in writing
  – safe default pronoun in most situations

• aku
  – informal, intimate, used with friends, family, or in songs, poems, and literature
  – feels more personal and close

Your sentence with saya sounds neutral and polite. With aku, it sounds more personal or intimate:

• Kadang-kadang aku merasa stres karena konflik batin.

How would I say often instead of sometimes?

Use sering for often:

• Sering saya merasa stres karena konflik batin.
• Saya sering merasa stres karena konflik batin.

sering = often, frequently.
You can also say:

• Cukup sering saya merasa stres… – Quite often I feel stressed…
• Terlalu sering saya merasa stres… – Too often I feel stressed…

Does this sentence indicate present or past time? How do I say I sometimes felt stressed?

Indonesian verbs don’t change form for tense.
Saya merasa stres can mean:

• I feel stressed (present)
• I felt stressed (past)
• I will feel stressed (future) — if the context makes it clear

To make the time clearer, you add time expressions:

• Dulu kadang-kadang saya merasa stres karena konflik batin.
  – In the past, I sometimes felt stressed because of inner conflict.
• Sekarang kadang-kadang saya merasa stres…
  – Now, I sometimes feel stressed…
• Nanti mungkin kadang-kadang saya merasa stres…
  – Later, I might sometimes feel stressed…

Is there any article like a or the before konflik batin in Indonesian?

Indonesian has no articles like a/an/the.

• konflik batin can mean:
  • an inner conflict,
  • the inner conflict,
  • inner conflict (in general)

Context tells you which English article fits best. In your sentence, natural translations include:

• Sometimes I feel stressed because of inner conflict.
• Sometimes I feel stressed because of an inner conflict.
• Sometimes I feel stressed because of the inner conflict (I have).

All come from the same Indonesian phrase karena konflik batin.