Anxiety is an uncomfortable feeling of fear or stress.
It's a common feeling that everyone can have at some stage.
What makes one person anxious might not make another person feel the same. You might worry about exams and school, while others do not.
Anxiety can become a problem if it:
- gets in the way of your normal day-to-day activities
- carries on for more than a couple of weeks
If this is happening, you may have an anxiety disorder.
We have a separate page about anxiety in children.
Causes of anxiety
Many things can cause anxiety. This includes stressful situations. These could be school exams or family problems.
Sometimes it's a mix of lots of different reasons. The exact cause of anxiety is not always clear.
Check if you have anxiety
There are many signs of anxiety.
You may:
- feel irritable, argumentative or always in a bad mood
- feel worried all the time that something bad will happen
- need to be told all the time that everything will be OK
- be upset with mistakes or changes to your routine
- feel the need to be perfect
- have difficulty concentrating
- be restless
Anxiety can cause physical signs such as:
- have a dry mouth or difficulty swallowing
- have problems sleeping
- get headaches or tense muscles
- have a rapid heart rate
- feel sick or have diarrhoea
Ways to get help for anxiety
The type of help you need depends on how much anxiety is affecting your day-to-day life.
Get information and tools to help yourself
Learning about anxiety and ways to deal with it can help.
It can be helpful to find out more about how you are feeling, and how to help manage your thoughts and feelings. You may hear this called self-management, self-help or self-care.
Find anxiety tips and self help
Talk to someone
It can feel scary or difficult to talk to someone about how you are feeling. But it can help you work out what help you need and understand that you're not alone and your feelings are normal.
There are charities and organisations where you can get support from counsellors and other people trained to support children and young people.
You can text, message, or phone them. Some have support groups.
Charities and organisations that help young people with anxiety
When you might need more support
You may need extra support if:
- you have more than 1 sign of anxiety for more than 2 weeks
- anxiety affects your day-to-day life
Check for other types of anxiety
You may have a specific type of anxiety if you have any of these signs:
- have panic attacks often
- find it hard to control your worry
- get very anxious about everyday situations at school or at home
- avoid meeting new people
- have unwanted thoughts and urges (obsessions)
- have the need to repeat things (compulsions)
- have bad memories, flashbacks or nightmares that cause significant distress
- have a fear you can’t deal with of an object, place, situation, feeling, animal
- worry about your body, or a fear that you may be unwell or have a serious illness
Ways to get help for anxiety
The type of help you need depends on how much your anxiety is affecting your day-to-day life.
Get information and tools to help yourself
Learning about anxiety and ways to deal with it can help.
It can be helpful to find out more about how you are feeling, and how to help manage your thoughts and feelings. You may hear this called self-management, self-help or self-care.
Find anxiety tips and self help
Talk to someone
It can feel scary or difficult to talk to someone about how you are feeling. But it can help you work out what help you need and understand that you're not alone and your feelings are normal.
There are charities and organisations where you can get support from counsellors and other people trained to support children and young people.
You can text, message, or phone them. Some have support groups.
Organisations that help young people with anxiety
When to contact your GP
You may need extra support if:
- you have more than 1 sign of anxiety for more than 2 weeks
- anxiety affects your day-to-day life
If anxiety begins to take over your life, talk to your GP.
They can recommend treatment. They may be able to refer you for treatment or recommend you talk to a trained therapist such as counsellor, psychologist or psychotherapist.
Many different types of therapy are used to treat anxiety. This includes cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
CBT helps people to learn about their anxiety. Through this process, they can learn to manage it.