Death anxiety, also called thanatophobia or fear of death, is “emotional distress and insecurity aroused by reminders of mortality,” according to the American Psychological Association (APA). Generally speaking, anyone can have a little anxiety around death, and it isn’t a clinical diagnosis. Though, technically, if you have a persistent, irrational fear of, say, flying because you’re scared of dying in a plane crash, you could be diagnosed with a specific phobia (yep, specific phobia is an actual condition).

Some small studies suggest that people in their 20s are more prone to anxiety about death. And while it’s unclear why that is, it could have to do with the pressure to make sense of your life at that age, says Dr. King.

“If you’re still hungry for an authentic life, chances are the anxiety [about death] is going to be greater,” says existential therapist Jane Prelinger, LICSW, co-founding director of The Center for Existential Studies and Psychotherapy. Prelinger adds that this is part of the reason some therapists use existential therapy to help clients approach death anxiety by asking, if we’re all going to die, how can we live more fully right now?

Wondermind