While there is no cure for any of the anxiety disorders, there are many effective treatments to relieve symptoms and greatly improve your quality of life. Unfortunately, a large percentage of sufferers never gets properly diagnosed or treated, mainly because of the social stigma attached to anxiety disorders and other mental-health problems. No one has pinpointed the precise cause of anxiety disorders, but there are many theories as to their origin. As with other psychiatric illnesses, anxiety disorders are probably rooted in biology, psychology, social circumstances, and environment to varying degrees. An imbalance of the brain chemical, serotonin, which is believed to play a major role in mood regulation, also may be involved.
Some people inherit a tendency toward an anxiety disorder, which can run in families.
A genetic predisposition may be triggered or exacerbated by distorted thinking and learned behaviors. Mentally healthy people think nothing of sweat, on a warm day or noticing a subtle change in their heart rate when someone they are attracted to enters the room. But someone with an anxiety disorder may perceive those same physiological changes as harbingers of doom. Researchers have also found that certain environmental stresses, such as the death of a loved one, getting divorced, moving to a different city, or starting college, may precipitate or aggravate anxiety-disorder symptoms. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice.