Anxiety and Youth

Did you know?

  • Anxiety disorders are among the most common mental health problems for children, youth, and young adults. In 2009, 4 per cent of youth (12 to 19 years) and 5.8 per cent of young adults (20 to 29 years) in Canada were diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. These rates were higher among young women and Indigeneous people.

  • Between 15 per cent and 25 per cent of Canadians experience at least one mental health problem or illness before they turn 19 years of age. They have a higher likelihood than others of facing a second episode later in life.

  • Only one in six people under the age of 19 is properly diagnosed with anxiety, and only one in five under the age of 12 receives adequate treatment.

  • Mental health and mental illness can affect a person’s well-being throughout their lifetime. Positive mental health in youth and young adults is correlated with a higher likelihood of completing school, positive social relations, higher levels of self-confidence, and increased resilience.

Source: Martha Butler & Melissa Pang, Current Issues in Mental Health in Canada: Child and Youth Mental Health, Publication no. 2014-13, Parliamentary Information and Research Service, Library of Parliament, Ottawa, 5 March 2014.

Signs of Anxiety

Adolescence is a time of self-discovery and experimentation. It is not uncommon for youth to display emotions such as moodiness, irritability, and impulsiveness; or to experiment with drugs and alcohol. Youth often have to deal with many social pressures and worries which may affect their self-esteem and sense of identity. At what point do these normal manifestations of development in adolescence become a sign of an anxiety disorder?

Children or youth may need professional help if they are so overwhelmed by their anxieties and fears that they have trouble functioning socially and/or academically. Common signs of an anxiety disorder in youth include:

  • Crying a lot

  • Constantly worrying about grades

  • Always trying to be perfect or being afraid to make mistakes

  • Not sleeping well and/or having nightmares

  • Being afraid of the dark

  • Worrying about something horrible happening to loved ones

  • Feeling like they’re going crazy

  • Obsessing about dying

  • Avoiding friends or social situations

  • Being afraid to speak up or ask questions in class

  • Blanking out or freezing up in stressful situations

The persistence of these signs may indicate an anxiety disorder, particularly if these symptoms interfere with daily life.

Source: KidsHelpPhone.ca

Getting Help

If you think you have an anxiety disorder, talk to a parent or other relative, teacher, counsellor, crisis phone line, doctor, or any adult you trust.

If you are contemplating suicide, harm to yourself, or harm to someone else, please call 911 or ask someone to take you to the emergency department of a hospital immediately.

For non-urgent or semi-urgent situations, there are many resources available to you. These include:

Helplines

Helplines provide support for individuals who are experiencing a crisis, and for their family members, guardians, service providers, caregivers, and friends. They are a great resource for immediate supportive listening and crisis counselling, for information on community service providers, for referrals to services, for short-term follow-up services, and (in some cases) for home-based interventions.

Here is a list of helplines from across Ontario that offer help with mental health issues. If you are under 18, particularly note the Kid’s Help Phone and, for people in Ottawa, the Youth Services Bureau of Ottawa Crisis Line.

Here is a helpful article for parents whose adolescent children struggle with anxiety, focusing on causes of anxiety that are often specific to teenagers.

In-Person Resources

If you don’t know where to start or if there are no anxiety-specific centres in your area, the first step to finding help can be a walk-in clinic. Doctors at walk-in clinics can talk to you about options and provide referrals to other local services that will help with anxiety.

Skip the Waiting Room is a website that can help you find walk-in clinics in Ontario.

This website provides a list of walk-in clinics in Eastern Ontario that offer immediate, free walk-in counselling services.

Self-Help Exercises

Here is a collection of audio files that can talk you through psychological exercises that help with anxiety. These include breathing exercises, progressive relaxation exercises, mindfulness and meditation exercises, body scans, yoga, and visualization. These can help to get you through an immediate bout of anxiety as you work on other steps in getting treatment.

Research and Advocacy on Youth Mental Health

The Mental Health Commission of Canada’s Youth Council is made up of young people aged 18 to 30 years with lived experience of mental health problems or illnesses, either personally or through a loved one. The purpose of the Youth council is to increase youth participation in service delivery and policy making with respect to youth mental health systems in Canada. The council offers a number of programs and resources.

Further Reading

Dr. Michael Cheng, MD, Overcoming Anxiety: Guide for Families.

K. Kellie Leitch, Reaching for the Top: A Report by the Advisor on Healthy Children and Youth, Catalogue no. H21-296/2007E, Health Canada, Ottawa, 2007.

Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) – Information and strategies for parents of children living with anxiety.

Public Health Agency of Canada, “The Current Health of Canada’s Youth and Young Adults,” in The Chief Public Health Officer’s Report on the State of Public Health in Canada, 2011: Youth and Young Adults – Life in Transition.