Causes of Anxiety Disorders

There are many theories about the causes of Anxiety Disorders and panic attacks. Sometimes it can be confusing for someone who has an Anxiety Disorder to sift through all the different opinions. Over the years, I have heard some fairly incredible theories and the worse aspect of some of those theories is that it can lead people down the wrong path.

Sometimes the first job we have is to educate people that regardless of the theory as to why this is happening right now, you can recover. Don't get me wrong, it is important to understand everything you can about what is happening to you, why it is happening and why it continues to happen. From this knowledge, we reach a platform that says "OK, from what I know and understand, what is the way out."

The other thing we have to understand is that theories change with the wind as more-and-more research is undertaken. New understandings are reached and old theories are thrown into the rubbish bin. We need to start with the understanding that the current "accepted" theory as to the cause of Anxiety Disorders or panic attacks is just the latest findings in research, and may not be the definitive answer. Maybe it is just partial understanding.

Major Life Stressor

Over the years, we have seen that the seed cause for many people who develop an Anxiety Disorder is a major life stressor. It may be a combination of major life stressors. These can include:

Grief - Death in the family, death of a parent, death of a close friend, spouse
Financial difficulties - loss of a job, overwhelming debt, problems at work, etc.
Major trauma - such as

• such as being held up in a robbery
• being involved in an accident
• encountering a major environmental disaster such as bush fires, earthquakes, cyclones, hurricanes, floods etc
• witnessing a violent crime
• life threatening experience
• major illness
• childhood trauma/ abuse

"Good stressors" - can include planning a wedding, getting married, having a baby, starting a new job

Relationship difficulties - divorce, marital problems, abusive relationships - either family, spouse, friends.

Many people can identify a major life stressor in their life that may have been the emotional root of the Anxiety Disorder. Sometimes the trouble with these events is that they may have occurred many months, even years before the onset of the Anxiety Disorder. It seems to build emotionally until the dam is broken into Anxiety or panic.

Many people will be aware that this event is still effecting them, eg., the grief felt over the loss of a loved one or the trauma of a life-threatening experience. The other problem people encounter with this is the rationalization: "What is past is past;" or "I thought I had dealt with it at the time;" or, "It shouldn't be effecting me now, it happened year (months) ago." If it is effecting you now, then it is a present moment issue. Just because it happened in the past doesn't discount that it still needs to be addressed and healed.

A Build up of Stressors

This is what I commonly call "The Way we Walk through Life". Sometimes we have spent our whole life tensed up against ... life. Sure, we all have "bits and pieces." None of us are perfect, but for some of us, we spend our life trying to be someone that we think other people want us to be. "What will they think of me" is a common thought.

The build up of stressors can also be from the fact that we may be the "strong" one in the family or circle of friends. We are the ones that people come to. We are the ones people unload their problems and concerns onto. We take on their problems, troubles, emotional baggage and may not have the tools or skills within ourselves to deal with that extra load. Some people have the experience of feeling upset after leaving a friend who is emotionally distraught. Some people feel depressed after trying to counsel a friend who is depressed. They have taken on the emotional state.

It is not only that we are taking on other people's problems and emotions, but it is also that we are not looking after our own needs. We put ourselves last and put everyone else first. We give and give and don't put anything back in to replenish our own resources.

The other aspect is that many people simply do not "like" themselves. They treat themselves as second-class citizens. The word "inner critic" does not fully describe the sort of self-statements people throw at themselves. They are hateful phrases we say to ourselves. It is abusive. And we wonder why we aren't getting anywhere. It is because we have locked ourselves up in a prison of self-hate. We chastise everything we do. It is never good enough. And there is always the special taunt of "what will other people think."

Another anxiety and stress builder is having "no boundaries." In everyday lingo, not being able to say no. This is a particularly hard issue because not only do we get the stress/ tension/ anxiety of "having" to do something you don't want to do, but feel you have to, you also get the emotional blockbusters of anger and guilt. Guilt, because we use the inner critic to chastise ourselves by saying "how dare you for not wanting to do X. How selfish of you." Anger, because we have turned our back on ourselves once again.

The other way we walk through life that causes a build up of stressors is trying to be "perfect," or as "perfect" as we think other people want us to be.