Women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, and the prevalence of anxiety disorders is significantly higher for women (23.4 percent) than men (14.3 percent).
Anxiety disorders affect nearly 1 in 5 adults in the United States. Women are more than twice as likely as men to get an anxiety disorder in their lifetime. Anxiety disorders are often treated with counseling, medicine, or a combination of both. Some women also find that yoga or meditation helps with anxiety disorders.
But why are women more likely to experience anxiety than men? It could be because of differences in brain chemistry and hormone fluctuations. Reproductive events across a woman's life are associated with hormonal changes, which have been linked to anxiety.
It is well-documented that females are more likely than males to develop an anxiety disorder with lifetime and past-year rates of anxiety disorders being 1.5–2 times higher among females than males [2].
According to National Comorbidity Survey data, panic disorder is 2.5 times more prevalent in women than in men. Do physiological changes for women during the perimenstrual and perimenopausal phase play a role in this disorder?
Gender differences are common in self-reported emotional experiences. Women report greater affective intensity (Fujita et al., 1991) and experience negative emotions, such as fear more frequently (Brebner, 2003; Fischer et al., 2004).
This result parallels other studies showing that women report more stressful life events (20). Large population-based European studies have also found higher mean PSS scores among women compared with men (12–14).
Anxiety conditions affect 1 in 4 people in Australia and they are treatable.
Children who endured abuse or trauma or witnessed traumatic events are at higher risk of developing an anxiety disorder at some point in life. Adults who experience a traumatic event also can develop anxiety disorders. Stress due to an illness.
The present study found significant gender differences in perceived stress levels, with the females reporting significantly higher total PSS levels, in addition, more females indicated more moderate levels of stress compared to their male counterparts.
Anxiety disorders was the most prevalent disorder group among females, and more common in the 12–17 years age group.
Anxiety disorders (such as Social Phobia) are the most common type of disorder, affecting 1 in 6 (17%, or 3.3 million) Australians, followed by Affective disorders (such as Depressive Episode) (8%), and Substance Use disorders (such as Alcohol Dependence) (3.
Most researchers conclude that anxiety is genetic but can also be influenced by environmental factors. In other words, it's possible to have anxiety without it running in your family. There is a lot about the link between genes and anxiety disorders that we don't understand, and more research is needed.
These findings support a direct link between intelligence and anxiety. Emotional intelligence may also play a role in anxiety and other mood disorders. A 2021 study suggests that different levels of emotional intelligence can be tied to emotional distress, including symptoms of anxiety, depression, and worry.
There is a multitude of sources that could be triggering your anxiety, such as environmental factors like a job or personal relationship, medical conditions, traumatic past experiences – even genetics plays a role, points out Medical News Today.
The most time stressed people in Australia are the 35 to 44 age group where almost half report being chronically time stressed.
Mental illness in Australia
One in five (20%) Australians aged 16-85 experience a mental illness in any year. The most common mental illnesses are depressive, anxiety and substance use disorder. These three types of mental illnesses often occur in combination.
Men are, on average, more outwardly aggressive than women and so it might be assumed that they are also angrier. But this doesn't appear to be the case. Research has consistently found that women experience anger as frequently and as intensely as men.
Regardless of the guideline used, males were more active than women. Socioeconomic level was positively associated with leisure-time physical activity in both genders.
Moreover, in several studies of aggression paradigms, men showed higher aggression than women under relatively neutral conditions; however, provocation rather weakens the difference in aggressive behavior between men and women [3,13,20].
Brain research
In numerous studies females score higher than males in standard tests of emotion recognition, social sensitivity and empathy.