Understanding Anxiety in Young People

Anxiety is now one of the most common mental health issues affecting young people in Australia. For many parents, carers, teachers and support workers, it can be difficult to know when anxiety is a normal part of growing up, and when it has become something more serious.

At The Sunlight Centre, we believe that understanding anxiety is one of the first steps in supporting young people well. Anxiety is not the enemy. In many ways, anxiety is a normal human survival response. It is designed to keep us safe, alert us to danger, and help us respond to threat.

The problem begins when that survival system becomes overactive and based on potential maladaptive coping mechanisms.

Anxiety is an overprotective alarm system

Anxiety is connected to fear, stress, worry, and even excitement. It is part of the body’s natural alarm system. If there is a real threat, anxiety can help us respond quickly.

But for many young people, anxiety starts responding to perceived threats rather than actual danger.

This means a young person may feel intense fear or distress about going to school, speaking in class, being away from a parent, sitting an exam, attending social events, making mistakes, or being judged by others.

To the outside world, the situation may not seem dangerous. But to the anxious young person, their body and mind may be reacting as though they are under threat.

Not all anxiety is the same

One of the common mistakes adults make is treating all anxiety as though it is the same.

It is not.

Some young people experience separation anxiety, where they feel excessive fear about being away from a parent, caregiver or safe person. Others experience social anxiety, where they fear being judged, embarrassed, rejected, or scrutinised. Others may experience generalised anxiety, where worry becomes excessive, hard to control, and spread across multiple areas of life.

This is why blanket advice often fails.

Telling a young person to “just calm down”, “take a few deep breaths”, or “stop worrying” may be well intended, but it often misses what is really happening. Different types of anxiety require different types of support.

Signs and symptoms of anxiety

It is useful to understand the difference between signs and symptoms.

Signs are what other people can see. Symptoms are what the young person feels internally.

Common physical symptoms of anxiety can include a racing heart, sweating, nausea, dizziness, sleep difficulties, headaches, stomach aches, or feeling shaky.

Common emotional symptoms can include fear, worry, irritability, distress, or feeling overwhelmed.

Common behavioural signs can include avoidance, reassurance seeking, withdrawal, perfectionism, refusing school, needing constant checking, or becoming upset when asked to do something new or challenging.

Common thinking patterns can include catastrophising, overthinking, and jumping to the worst-case scenario.

A young person may not always say, “I feel anxious.” Sometimes anxiety looks like anger, avoidance, tears, shutdown, control, or refusal.

Why avoidance can strengthen anxiety

Avoidance is one of the most common responses to anxiety.

If a young person feels anxious about school, they may avoid school. If they feel anxious about speaking, they may avoid speaking. If they feel anxious about being judged, they may avoid social situations.

In the short term, avoidance works. The young person feels relief.

But in the long term, avoidance often teaches the brain that the situation really was dangerous. This can make the anxiety stronger over time.

This does not mean we force young people into distressing situations without support. It means we help them gradually build confidence, coping skills, and tolerance for discomfort.

The goal is not to remove all anxiety. The goal is to help the young person learn that they can cope.

Validation is not the same as reassurance

Many adults accidentally fall into the trap of giving constant reassurance.

“You’ll be fine.”
“Nothing bad will happen.”
“Everyone likes you.”
“You don’t need to worry.”

Reassurance can help briefly, but anxious young people often need more and more of it. Over time, they may become dependent on others to feel safe.

Validation is different.

Validation sounds like:

“I can see this feels really hard for you.”
“I understand why your body is reacting this way.”
“It makes sense that you feel anxious, and we can work through it step by step.”

Validation acknowledges the young person’s experience without feeding the anxiety.

Accidental enabling

Parents, teachers and support workers often want to protect young people from distress. This comes from care and love. But sometimes, without meaning to, adults can accidentally enable anxiety.

This can include allowing constant avoidance, speaking for the young person, removing every source of discomfort, giving excessive reassurance, or constantly checking that they are okay.

Again, this is usually done with good intentions.

But if every anxious feeling leads to the adult removing the challenge, the young person may not get the chance to build confidence.

Support should focus on helping the young person face challenges gradually, safely, and with the right tools.

How adults can support anxious young people

Supporting an anxious young person does not mean being harsh or dismissive. It also does not mean removing every difficult feeling.

Helpful support includes:

Validating what the young person is feeling.

Helping them understand anxiety as an overprotective alarm system.

Teaching emotional regulation skills.

Encouraging gradual exposure to feared situations.

Building confidence through small, achievable steps.

Helping them notice the connection between thoughts, emotions, physical sensations and behaviour.

Encouraging healthy coping strategies.

Knowing when to seek professional help.

The role of adults is not to rescue young people from every anxious moment. The role is to walk beside them while they learn they can cope.

When to seek support

If anxiety is interfering with school, friendships, sleep, family life, confidence, or daily functioning, it is worth seeking support early.

This may include speaking with a GP, school wellbeing staff, a counsellor, psychologist, or a trusted mental health service.

Early recognition and practical support can significantly improve outcomes for young people experiencing anxiety.

The Sunlight Centre’s role

The Sunlight Centre provides practical, evidence-based mental health awareness workshops for schools, workplaces and community groups.

Our work focuses on lowering stigma, building understanding, and giving people the tools to respond more confidently when someone is struggling.

We also provide free crisis counselling for teenagers and adults experiencing suicidal distress or non-suicidal self-injury.

Anxiety in young people is not about weakness, attention-seeking, or bad behaviour. Often, it is a young person’s survival system working too hard.

With understanding, support, and the right intervention, young people can learn to manage anxiety, build confidence, and move forward.

Contact us today for a workshop with your Team on 1300 259 724 or info@sunlightcentre.com.au

Author: Ken Loftus