Anxiety Awareness Month

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, with anxiety as a central focus. Anxiety is the most common co-occurring condition in autism — affecting up to 50% of autistic people. Understanding anxiety in autism requires understanding how it presents differently than in non-autistic people.

History

Mental Health Awareness Month was established in the US in 1949 by Mental Health America. Anxiety awareness has become a central component. The intersection of autism and anxiety has received growing research and clinical attention.

How to Participate

• →Learn how anxiety presents differently in autistic people — often through physical symptoms, meltdowns, or increased rigidity rather than verbal worry
• →Advocate for autism-informed anxiety treatment
• →Understand that reducing masking demands often reduces anxiety
• →Support access to anxiety treatment for autistic individuals of all ages
• →Learn about PDA as an anxiety-based autism profile

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