Question: Thank you Dr. Barkley for doing this!
  
  Could you comment on the prevalence of anxiety among adults with ADHD? Is there a connection between the two, and are there ADHD-specific ways to treat anxiety, and vice-versa?
Answer: Glad to.  Yes there is a connection both in underlying shared genetics and in causation over time.  The risk genes for ADHD are shared with those for anxiety to some extent but not completely.  About 20-25% of children with ADHD have one or more anxiety disorders.  That figure nearly doubles by adulthood (about age 35-45) to 45-50% if the ADHD goes untreated in adulthood.  Even over a typical 4 year period in adulthood, research shows that ADHD at time 1 is linked to increased risk for an anxiety disorder at time 2, even controlling for level of any anxiety at time 1.  We aer not sure why but experiencing repeated failure could easily lead to the acquisition of various anxiety disorders, in my opinion.  If the anxiety remains rlatively low and related to failure, then ADHD medications have been shown to improve it.  If it is greater and related to excess fearfulness, panic, worry over the future, etc. as occurs in anxiety disorders even without ADHD, then adding some anti-anxiety medication along with cognitive behavior therapy for anxiety among other psychological methods would likely be suggested to that person by an informed clinician.
content: Q: Thank you Dr. Barkley for doing this!
  
  Could you comment on the prevalence of anxiety among adults with ADHD? Is there a connection between the two, and are there ADHD-specific ways to treat anxiety, and vice-versa?
   Ans: Glad to.  Yes there is a connection both in underlying shared genetics and in causation over time.  The risk genes for ADHD are shared with those for anxiety to some extent but not completely.  About 20-25% of children with ADHD have one or more anxiety disorders.  That figure nearly doubles by adulthood (about age 35-45) to 45-50% if the ADHD goes untreated in adulthood.  Even over a typical 4 year period in adulthood, research shows that ADHD at time 1 is linked to increased risk for an anxiety disorder at time 2, even controlling for level of any anxiety at time 1.  We aer not sure why but experiencing repeated failure could easily lead to the acquisition of various anxiety disorders, in my opinion.  If the anxiety remains rlatively low and related to failure, then ADHD medications have been shown to improve it.  If it is greater and related to excess fearfulness, panic, worry over the future, etc. as occurs in anxiety disorders even without ADHD, then adding some anti-anxiety medication along with cognitive behavior therapy for anxiety among other psychological methods would likely be suggested to that person by an informed clinician.