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WATCH: Anxiety in teens: what it looks like and strategies to help

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Anxiety: a common psychological problem that effects many of us but, unfortunately, continues to be under-recognised. Generalised anxiety disorder surpasses just feeling anxious from time to time towards normal stress-provoking things. It is a mental illness that needs to be taken seriously. 

Generalized anxiety disorder refers to the tendency to feel anxious and uneasy about a range of different topics that occur in everyday settings, to the point where it starts to interfere with day-to-day functions. 

It is common among teens as they are at an age where they start to think more abstractly about the world and general worries seem more important.

Anxiety has the ability to affect teenagers' work, studies and relationships, often resulting in social phobia, meaning they are extremely shy or reluctant to engage with peers, feeling overwhelmingly self-conscious. It essentially prohibits them from doing normal teenage things as it takes great difficulty for them compared to neurotypical teens.

Watch Professor Ron Rapee from the Macquarie University of Sydney discusses anxiety in adolescents and how to combat it in the video above.

Do you or anyone you know suffer from anxiety? What are some of your coping methods? Let us know by emailing us at chatback@parent24.com and we could publish your comments. Do let us know if you'd like to remain anonymous. 

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