Anxiety One Of Top Issues Children Brought Up In Therapy Last Year

What Kids Are Carrying is a HuffPost UK series focusing on how the nation’s youngest generation is *really* feeling right now – and how parents and caregivers can support them.

Anxiety is one of the most common mental health concerns children brought up in therapy last year, according to therapists and counsellors.

As part of a new series uncovering the key mental health issues facing young children and teenagers right now, HuffPost UK spoke to a range of mental health professionals about the trends they noticed in the therapy room in 2025.

And every professional we spoke to cited anxiety as a common mental health concern among both children and teenagers.

In October last year, the NSPCC revealed anxiety was the most common mental health concern for children reaching out to Childline. The service delivered more than 12,000 counselling sessions to children and young people with concerns about anxiety.

A poll by Counselling Directory of over 100 therapists also found 47% cited anxiety as the most common concern brought up by children in therapy.

Belinda Gidman-Rowse is a school counsellor in a primary school in Devon who is seeing more children with anxiety.

Discussing what could be driving this, she told HuffPost UK: “We are living in an increasingly fear-based, fast-paced world that often lacks connection, consistency, and emotional support, and children absorb this climate.”

Among the children she sees in counselling sessions, she also noticed that over-exposure to screens from a young age, including prolonged tablet use and gaming, “appears to contribute to heightened anxiety and reduced emotional regulation”.

On top of this, there’s also a growing number of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND). Over 1.7 million pupils in England have special educational needs (SEN) – an increase of 5.6% since 2024, and part of a rising trend since 2016.

In children with autism and ADHD in particular, anxiety is “common”, said the school counsellor, “both as part of the neurodivergent experience and in response to diagnosis and potential stigma”.

Counselling Directory member Bella Hird suggested that adult anxiety might also be playing a part in why some young children are feeling so anxious.

“The reason that there seems to be an increase in the number of children presenting with anxiety is that there is an increase in the number of adults experiencing it,” she said.

“Anxiety has a bad rep, but it is part of what keeps us alive as long as we are able to do something with it – if we didn’t experience a moment of anxiety before we crossed a busy road, we wouldn’t check before we stepped out into it.

“Today, with all the access we have to information, we are constantly checking if we are safe, getting feedback to suggest that we are not and then having the realisation that there is very little we can do about it.

“Our children are growing up in a world that their adults are afraid of, they are learning that the world is an unsafe place. it is no wonder they are anxious.”

Therapist and BACP member Amanda MacDonald said young children may also feel anxious about the things they overhear, “things which would be seen as ‘adult worries’, for example financial difficulties, parents’ health or bereavement”.

“These are situations that are outside of the control of the child, but they may overhear or be aware of difficulties, and this in turn can increase anxiety for the child,” she noted.

Young children probably won’t be able to convey that they are anxious because they don’t have the words to explain it, but they may show other emotional responses such as becoming more tearful or fearful.

They might also experience physical symptoms – like tummy ache, headache, or generally feeling poorly – or display changes in behaviour, such as struggling to drift off, waking up in the night, or becoming anxious about being left alone at bedtime.

“An anxious child may be more clingy, may seek reassurance often, may be reluctant to go to school or join in at parties,” added Hird.

“You may even experience angry outbursts from an anxious child as they try, and fail, to control whatever it is that is causing the discomfort of anxiety.”

If your child is experiencing anxiety, experts stress that connection can be really helpful. School counsellor Belinda Gidman-Rowse urges parents to prioritise “warm, consistent 1:1 parent-child time”.

She explained: “Just 20 minutes a day of attuned attention (chatting, playing, reading books together) can significantly support emotional wellbeing. Play is a child’s natural language and provides a powerful, therapeutic way for them to express and process feelings.”

The expert added that helping children to name their feelings by role modelling this yourself (“I’m feeling a bit stressed right now”) can also support emotional awareness.

“Anxiety needs information; parents can support their children by preparing them for change through reading stories, providing clear explanations, or using visual supports. This helps transitions feel more predictable and safe,” she added.

Echoing the importance of connection, Counselling Directory member Mandi Simons told HuffPost UK: “Calm, consistent parental presence is key. Acknowledging feelings, staying emotionally available, protecting children from adult worries they are not ready to process, and prioritising one-to-one time all help children feel safer and more regulated.”

MacDonald added that “one of the best things a parent can do is to let them know that you love them, and that the anxiety may be really unpleasant to feel, but it can’t do them any harm”.

“Normalising the feeling is a really helpful approach, and helps to reduce some of the anxiety about the anxiety itself,” she noted.

Of course, life can be anxiety-inducing for parents – and it can be hard to hide this from children 24/7. If this resonates, it’s important to look after yourself too, as Hird noted “the best way we can support our children is to find a way to support ourselves”.

And while some anxiety is a normal and healthy response to life, if your child’s anxiety is persistent and impacting their day-to-day life, and stopping them from doing the things they love, experts recommend speaking to a mental health professional who can offer further support.

Our next article in the series will focus on anxiety in teens, and will be published later in the week.

• Mind, open Monday to Friday, 9am-6pm on 0300 123 3393.
• Samaritans offers a listening service which is open 24 hours a day, on 116 123 (UK and ROI – this number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill).
• CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably) offer a helpline open 5pm-midnight, 365 days a year, on 0800 58 58 58, and a webchat service.
• The Mix is a free support service for people under 25. Call 0808 808 4994 or email help@themix.org.uk
• Rethink Mental Illness offers practical help through its advice line which can be reached on 0808 801 0525 (Monday to Friday 10am-4pm). More info can be found on rethink.org.