People feel anxious when they experience more than their usual amount of nervousness. They might feel afraid for no immediately apparent reason, might get worried much of the time, cannot concentrate or cannot sleep because their thoughts or worries will not stop. The exact causes of anxiety is not known, but both environmental and biological factors may be involved.
Biological Factors
Neurotransmitters in the brain that affect the levels of serotonin, norepinephrine, glutamate and impact functioning of brain areas affect whether a person experiences anxiety. When the body and mind sense or perceive imbalances in these chemicals, physical or mental symptoms, such as nervousness or the experience of obsessive thoughts, appear.
Genetics
There is some evidence of a genetic link between relatives who experience anxiety and some evidence of brain abnormalities that may be inherited. For example, an area of the brain called the basal ganglia may metabolize glucose at a lower rate than normal, which then affects the brain's level of glutamate and causes anxiety symptoms.
Negative Thoughts
Cognitive-behavioral theorists think people pay too much attention to negative factors in their environment and underestimate their own ability to cope. Thus, they create negative thoughts and distortions that produce anxiety symptoms. This combination of thoughts and inability to cope builds upon itself, making the anxiety stronger and more persistent.
Internal Conflict (Classical Theory)
Classical psychoanalysts such as Sigmund Freud theorized that anxiety is caused by unconscious conflict, usually associated with drives. Freud's idea was that conflict would remain in the unconscious until it could be made conscious by means of psychoanalytic methods, such as dream analysis.
Conflict (Current Theory)
Newer schools of psychological theory still agree that anxiety is caused by conflict but have expanded the scope of which developmental patterns may be involved. Many now consider attachment theory (the quality of the infant's first bonding with a caretaker), timing and quality of neural development, and personal relational patterns as sources of potential anxiety-provoking conflict throughout life.
References
- "Synopsis of Psychiatry, 9th ed."; Benjamin J. Sadock, M.D., Virginia A. Sadock, M.D.; 2003
- "Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 4th ed., Text Revision (DSM-IV)"; American Psychiatric Association; 2000
- "Handbook of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapies, 2nd ed."; Keith S. Dobson, ed.; 2001
