The next National Anxiety Disorders Screening Day (NADSD) will be held on May 2, 2001, at many sites throughout the U.S. and Canada. The purpose of the event is to help thousands of people with anxiety disorders find treatment, educate the public about anxiety disorders, and combat stigma related to mental illness.

Sponsored in part by APA, the National Institute of Mental Health, and several other organizations, the first NADSD was held in 1994. Since that time, more than 300 million people have participated in the event, according to Freedom From Fear (FFF), a national nonprofit mental illness advocacy organization that coordinates NADSD. The organization’s literature also publicizes screening follow-up research studies by the New York State Psychiatric Institute showing that more than half of the participants who screen positive for an anxiety disorder during NADSD pursue treatment for their illness.

"Anxiety is a tremendous problem shared by millions of Americans," said Mary Guardino, executive director of Freedom From Fear. "We hope that educational programs such as screening days will help teach people to recognize the symptoms of anxiety and depression, and to realize that safe, effective treatments are available to help them feel better."

FFF maintains a Web site with information about anxiety disorders, an online anxiety screening questionnaire with a confidential summary of individual results, and a list of psychiatrists and others throughout the U.S. and Canada who screen year round for anxiety disorders. In April 2001 a list of the clinicians and organizations sponsoring the screenings for NADSD will be posted on the FFF Web site.

The site also advertises the services of clinicians registered with the Freedom From Fear Network. People who have completed questionnaires need only to type in their ZIP code to get a list of clinicians who will provide free reviews of their questionnaire results in person or by phone.