Anxiety in autism

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Illustration shows a boy gazing anxiously up at a large couch and pictures on a wall.

Unmasking anxiety in autism

Anxiety can assume unusual forms in people with autism — turning uncertainty, or even a striped couch, into a constant worry. New tools may help identify these hidden fears.

By Jessica Wright
4 October 2017 | 18 min read
Spectrum stories podcast logo.

Spectrum Stories: The overlap between autism and anxiety

In this episode of “Spectrum Stories,” host Jacob Brogan talks to clinicians about why anxiety is so common — but can be so hard to spot — in people with autism.

By Jacob Brogan
11 October 2017 | 1 min read
A brain scan showing an abnormally small amygdala

Anxiety may alter processing of emotions in people with autism

A brain region that processes emotions tends to be smaller in children who have both autism and anxiety than in those who have autism alone.

By Jessica Wright
6 September 2017 | 4 min read

From the archives

Autism can mask anxiety symptoms

Anxiety is one of the most common mental health conditions, as well as one of the most treatable. But when a person has autism, anxiety symptoms can be hard to see. Matthew Siegel calls for anxiety tests and treatments that are tailored to people with autism.

By Matthew Siegel
17 February 2015 | 3 min read

In autism, social difficulties may set the stage for anxiety

Poor social skills are a risk factor for the development of social anxiety, but the reverse — anxiety foreshadowing social problems — is not necessarily true.

By Sarah DeWeerdt
5 June 2017 | 3 min read

Uncertainty, anxiety each independently linked to autism

Children with autism fear the unknown and react negatively when faced with unpredictable situations. This intolerance of uncertainty is closely tied to anxiety but may manifest independently.

By Jessica Wright
9 February 2016 | 3 min read

Standard scale identifies anxiety in children with autism

A widely used questionnaire designed to measure anxiety flags the condition in children with autism.

By Jessica Wright
14 July 2017 | 3 min read

Autism’s social problems may stem from sense of touch

The anxiety and trouble with social skills seen in people with autism may originate outside of the brain, in neurons that govern touch.

By Jessica Wright
9 June 2016 | 5 min read

Uncertainty drives anxiety, sensory issues in autism

Helping children with autism cope with the unexpected may ease some of their symptoms.

By Ann Griswold
8 April 2016 | 4 min read

Adults with autism feel frequent, lingering anxiety

People with autism often feel anxious, worrying about everyday events and ruminating on their fears for long periods of time, reports a study published 8 May in the journal Autism.

By Laura Geggel
3 June 2014 | 3 min read

Ecstasy ingredient touted as treatment for anxiety in autism

The active ingredient in the drug popularly known as ecstasy eases social anxiety in people with autism.

By Nicholette Zeliadt
25 September 2018 | 4 min read

Anxiety, seizures mark mice with extra copy of autism gene

Mice with an extra copy of UBE3A, a gene linked to autism, have learning problems and anxiety, and are prone to seizures and fine-motor problems.

By Nicholette Zeliadt
31 July 2017 | 4 min read

Compulsions, anxiety replace autism in some children

Most children who lose their autism diagnosis develop related psychiatric conditions.

By Ann Griswold
2 January 2017 | 3 min read

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