According to the National Institute of Mental Health, nearly one in five American adults suffers from a full-blown anxiety disorder in every given year, and more than two in five will experience an anxiety disorder at some point over their lifespan. Of these cases, more than one in five can be classified as severe, meaning that the symptoms lead to a substantial impact on functioning and/or suicidality. And that’s just anxiety. If we add mood disorders (e.g., depression), obsessive-compulsive and related disorders, psychotic disorders, substance use and other disorders, the yearly base rates climb close to 50 percent.
Scary.
