Are Any Anxiety Disorders More Likely To Strike At Any Particular Age?

Dr. Jean Milofsky answers the question: 'Anxiety Disorder Risk Based On Age?'

ByABC News
April 15, 2008, 5:46 PM

— -- Question: Are any anxiety disorders more likely to strike at any particular age?

Answer: Typically anxiety disorders will show up starting in adolescents and all the way through the 30s and the early 40s. You can also see some anxiety disorders show up in children in the form of clinging, timidity, school phobia and the like. If you see an anxiety disorder show up for the first time in somebody over 45, you may want to especially consider medical causes for that, since it's rare for any new psychiatric disorder to show up in middle age.

But again, you have to really consider the history of the patient. If somebody is exposed to trauma, they can develop an anxiety disorder at any age.

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