Caring surveyed thousands of American seniors to better understand their mental health challenges and how they’re managing symptoms and finding ways to cope against the unknowns of aging.

Charlotte, NC | May 14, 2025 – Caring.com, a leading senior living referral service and the nation’s top site for care reviews, published the results of its 2025 Senior Mental Health Study. The study, based on a survey of more than 4,000 Americans aged 65 or older conducted in April of 2025, found that 1 in 3 seniors have a clinical diagnosis of anxiety or depression. 

Surprisingly, caregiving stress ranked lower among causes of anxiety and depression. For many seniors, personal health concerns and global events were more significant sources of stress. 

While some respondents have lived with symptoms for over six years, others have only recently developed them. Women were more likely than men to report a diagnosis.

The study also highlights a reliance on medication over therapy to manage their symptoms, despite expert insights emphasizing the benefits of talk therapy. Dr. Ken Robbins, board-certified in both internal medicine and psychiatry, states, “People are often skeptical that talk therapy is going to be helpful to them when they can talk to friends or relatives, and they don’t feel the need to talk to a therapist. They don’t understand how different it is when you speak to a professional who can help change the way you think.” 

Overall, the survey shows that even though seniors may be struggling with their mental health, they’ve found several positive ways to cope with their stressors, such as prayer, meditation, spending time with a pet, or staying active. 

Caring.com provides numerous resources to help seniors and their caregivers with the financial, emotional, and physical impacts of aging and/or caring for their parents.

Read our full report for more findings from this survey, including: 

  • 1 in 3 anxious/depressed seniors have a clinical diagnosis, and many of them have lived with their conditions for over six years.
  • More seniors use medications for anxiety and/or depression than take part in therapy.
  • Current events is the highest cause of anxiety, while caregiving is one of the least-common reasons seniors say they feel anxious or depressed.
  • Seniors find several positive ways to cope with their stressors, such as exercising or spending time with a pet.

Caring.com partnered with PollFish to survey more than 4,000 American seniors 65 years and older to review their anxiety and depression, contributing factors, and how they are coping with their struggles. The survey was conducted online on April 14th – 15th, 2025. 

About Caring 

With millions of visitors to its flagship website, Caring.com, Caring is a leading senior living referral service and the nation’s top site for senior care reviews. Founded in 2007, Caring’s mission is to help as many seniors and their caregivers as possible through empathetic, expert guidance. Applying cutting-edge technology to this humane mission, Caring provides relevant senior care information and support, as well as comprehensive senior living and senior care directories for the United States, including nearly 400,000 consumer reviews. Through a toll-free referral line at (800) 558-0653, Caring’s trusted, nationwide team of Family Advisors — who are among the most highly trained, highly skilled, and knowledgeable experts in senior care — helps seniors and their families research and connect to the most appropriate services and support for their specific situations. For more information about our organization and our free services for seniors and their families, please visit http://www.caring.com/about and join with Caring on Facebook.