High stress in childhood and young adulthood can indicate depressive and anxiety disorders in young adulthood.
Exposure to major and potentially traumatic events are associated with significantly increased risk for a depressive or anxiety disorders like major depression, dysthymia (a mild, chronic form of depression), generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, panic disorder, alcohol abuse and dependence, drug abuse and dependence, posttraumatic stress disorder, and antisocial personality disorder.
R. Jay Turner and Donald A. Lloyd of Florida State University in Tallahassee interviewed 1,803 subjects aged 18-23 from 1998-2000, and reported the results in The Archives of General Psychiatry.