Is there anyone here who thinks that anxiety is a result of genetics and can't be fixed with therapy?

Because I truly think in my case, that is the problem. I am a very smart person, but I find it hard to listen to people who tell me to just deal with my anxiety and do things that make me anxious when all it results in on my end is heart palpitations, sweating, and teeth grinding no matter how many times I face the things that make me anxious. Is there anyone out here, especially those with an anxiety disorder, that agree, its not always a case of the person being "mentally ill" in a cognitive sense, its more like having lupus. I wouldn't tell someone with lupus that it is all in their head and medication is only a temporary solution.

Is there anyone here who thinks that anxiety is a result of genetics and can't be fixed with therapy?
Absolutely not! I have post traumatic stress disorder from Hurricane Andrew and torture, so I qualify as one who had an anxiety disorder. I had it treated by a combination of medication and therapy. It also helped me when I stopped thinking like a victim and started thinking like a survivor. I don't believe that either therapy alone or medication alone can treat anxiety, but a combination of both. If it helps you, I take a medication called Cyproheptadine. Even most psychiatrists don't know about it. It removes the emotional attachment that is attached to a memory and helps to control the anxiety associated with it. But cyproheptadine without therapy would never work. Start thinking of yourself as a survivor.
Reply:its not really all in your head, in the sense you are referring to... it could be a chemical imbalance and genetics could potentially have something to do with it. you might need a medication to balance you out a little because trying to face the things that make you anxious with out it can be really tough. i would ask a doctor about it
Reply:I actually have a friend who was born in a secure environment and has a very loving family, but yet she still suffers from anxiety problems. So probably genetics can play part. I think going into counseling would help you to gain more control in your way of thinking, and hopefully help you to be more effectively getting better to rid your anxiety. It will take a rigorous work, but if you keep up your faith you may find the permanent solution.
Reply:I have a severe case of it. I am known as higly intelligent, but a royal pain in the ***. Calculating correct results is what we do best, and drive ourselves mad as perfectionists.





Docs can't do much legally unless they label it, like 'manic-depression' or schizoid...then they can give medicines.





Different breeds of dogs like a pit bull, or ****** spaniel have different genetic temperments. I have the scars to prove it.
Reply:I feel the same way. I have suffered from anxiety for most of my life, and the object of my anxiety was usually really irrational. For example, even now, when I am left alone in my house at night, I freak out and think that someone is going to shoot me through the window or break in and murder me. I literally have to find a room in my house where there aren't any windows, and stay there until someone else gets home. There is absolutely NO basis behind my fear, and it is completely irrational, but trying to convince myself of this is impossible in the moment. I KNOW that I shouldn't be afraid, but I am anyway. The only way I've ever been able to deal with it is by distracting myself to keep myself from freaking out in the first place. Once I start getting scared, I can't stop it until I'm not alone anymore. I've had the same experience of people telling me I should just be able to suck it up and deal with it, especially if I can see that my fears are unfounded. I don't think that any amount of therapy would help.





However, I was depressed a couple of years ago, and I was put on Lexapro (which is an antidepressant but also works as an antianxiety medication). Within a week or two, my anxiety completely disappeared. It just stopped. I wasn't scared anymore. Just like that. It was almost freaky how well it worked for that specific type of anxiety (it didn't work for my depression, and it didn't really help with my social anxiety, because I think that was more psychological). I just wasn't scared of being home alone anymore. I have since stopped taking Lexapro, and the anxiety is back, but since I'm not home alone too often it doesn't really affect my life very much. But the fact that it completely disappeared with medication says to me that the fears were caused by my brain chemistry rather than memories or some other psychological trauma.
Reply:Well, I partially agree with you. I have no idea if there's a genetic component to anxiety, there very well may be. However, if a certain thing runs in a family, it may not be genetic, it may be behaviorally based. If you have certain behaviors, and your sibling and a parent or two also have those behaviors, possibly you learned those from the people you grew up around.





I wholeheartedly agree with you that it is stupid to tell a person to "just get over" their problems. In that sense, it IS just like a disease, you can't simply will away diabetes and you can't simply will away anxiety.





I really recommend this book that I have:


http://www.amazon.com/Anxiety-Phobias-Pa...


and here are the reviews for the previous edition:


http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/custome...





I've read part of this book so far, and what I've read has really helped me to understand anxiety, and it's also helped me to feel better. It's very good for a "smart" person, who thinks logically. It's very sensible, reasonable, and logical. It discusses possible causes for anxiety, and talks about how other problems can cause some of the symptoms of anxiety, which brings on the anxiety.





You can't make yourself better by simply facing the things that make you anxious without changing anything. You have to learn to deal with the anxiety, how to pretty much accept that it's there and that you are okay and are going to be okay, and how to get through it. Once you can do that, you will feel less anxiety, because you are more in control, and will start to feel better.





I honestly think the best thing that the book has taught me is about breathing. Such a simple thing, but so important! Try something the next time you're feeling anxious: breathe with your diaphragm, so that your stomach moves in and out instead of your chest. Take nice deep breaths this way, and you WILL feel better.





Of course, you can also go to a doctor of some kind, who may or may not give you medicine, possibly anti-depressants, which I really do not like. I took one (Paxil) for a brief period, and I could not deal with the side effects and just being medicated. Yuck. Of course, others would probably respond differently, and to different drugs, that's just my experience (well, and the experiences of other people I know). If you would go to a doctor and get prescribed an anti-depressant, I really suggest doing research on your own about it, so you know about the side effects, and the withdrawal when you want to stop taking it





Good luck!
Reply:I think anxiety is a result of your brain chemistry, which can be inherited. In may cases, therapy won't change your brain chemistry, but since your body is comprised of the food you feed it, you can change your chemistry by eating certain foods. Just like caffeine makes you awake and calcium builds strong bones.


I don't think anxiety is a sign of mental illness; my first course of action would be to start with the diet, and if you're a woman, look into your iron levels.

mint