Editing Anxiety disorder (section)

=== Stigma ===
People with an anxiety disorder may be challenged by prejudices and stereotypes held by other people, most likely as a result of misconceptions around anxiety and anxiety disorders.<ref name="Corrigan 67–73">{{cite journal | vauthors = Corrigan PW | title = Lessons learned from unintended consequences about erasing the stigma of mental illness | journal = World Psychiatry | volume = 15 | issue = 1 | pages = 67–73 | date = February 2016 | pmid = 26833611 | pmc = 4780288 | doi = 10.1002/wps.20295 }}</ref> Misconceptions found in a data analysis from the National Survey of Mental Health Literacy and Stigma include: (1) many people believe anxiety is not a real medical illness; and (2) many people believe that people with anxiety could turn it off if they wanted to.<ref name="beyondblue">{{cite web |title=Stigma relating to anxiety |url=https://www.beyondblue.org.au/mental-health/anxiety/stigma-relating-to-anxiety |website=Beyond Blue |access-date=3 July 2023 |archive-date=23 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240323041317/https://www.beyondblue.org.au/mental-health/anxiety/stigma-relating-to-anxiety |url-status=dead }}</ref> For people experiencing the physical and mental symptoms of an anxiety disorder, stigma and negative social perception can make an individual less likely to seek treatment.<ref name="beyondblue"/> Prejudice that some people with mental illness turn against themselves is called self-stigma.<ref name="Corrigan 67–73" />

There is no explicit evidence for the exact cause of stigma towards anxiety. Stigma can be divided by social scale, into the macro, intermediate, and micro levels. The macro-level marks society as a whole with the influence of mass media. The intermediate level includes healthcare professionals and their perspectives. The micro-level details the individual's contributions to the process through self-stigmatization.<ref name="Rossler 2016">{{cite journal | vauthors = Rössler W | title = The stigma of mental disorders: A millennia-long history of social exclusion and prejudices | journal = EMBO Reports | volume = 17 | issue = 9 | pages = 1250–1253 | date = September 2016 | pmid = 27470237 | pmc = 5007563 | doi = 10.15252/embr.201643041 }}</ref>

It has become very prevalent that many college students undergo some sort of mental disorder in their early adulthood. Anxiety has become one of the main ones that has grown in prevalence over time. This is due to many issues such as different social pressures, school, career worries, etc. This has not only affected a lot of the youth in today’s world but their overall quality of life. However, it is important to bring this issue to light since there is such a negative stigma when it comes to mental health; but rather than ignoring it and letting the issue grow exponentially larger, it is important to recognize ways that it can be lessened for future generations.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Baik |first1=Seung Yeon |last2=Shin |first2=Ki Eun |last3=Fitzsimmons-Craft |first3=Ellen E. |last4=Eisenberg |first4=Daniel |last5=Wilfley |first5=Denise E. |last6=Taylor |first6=C. Barr |last7=Newman |first7=Michelle G. |title=The relationship of race, ethnicity, gender identity, sex assigned at birth, sexual orientation, parental education, financial hardship and comorbid mental disorders with quality of life in college students with anxiety, depression or eating disorders |journal=Journal of Affective Disorders |date=December 2024 |volume=366 |pages=335–344 |doi=10.1016/j.jad.2024.08.098 |pmid=39173926 |pmc=11444337 }}</ref>

Stigma can be described in three conceptual ways: cognitive, emotional, and behavioral. This allows for differentiation between stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination.<ref name="Rossler 2016"/>