← Back to CalendarAll of May (Mental Health Awareness Month)
Anxiety Awareness Month
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and we use it to focus on anxiety. Anxiety is one of the most common co-occurring conditions in autism: a 2011 meta-analysis found at least one anxiety disorder in 39.6 percent of autistic young people, and a 2019 meta-analysis found a current anxiety disorder in 27 percent of autistic adults. Understanding anxiety in autism requires understanding how it presents differently than in non-autistic people.
History
Mental Health Awareness Month is observed in the US each May. The intersection of autism and anxiety has received growing research and clinical attention.
SOURCES
- van Steensel FJA, Bögels SM, Perrin S. Anxiety disorders in children and adolescents with autistic spectrum disorders: a meta-analysis. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 2011
- Hollocks MJ, et al. Anxiety and depression in adults with autism spectrum disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Psychological Medicine, 2019
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
ANXIETYMENTAL-HEALTHCO-OCCURRINGSUPPORT