Causes of anxiety disorders

Genetics
In cases where identical twins have been separated at birth and brought up separately, the risk of one developing panic disorder when the first did was 30% greater. If you have an immediate relative (parent, sibling or child of someone) with a panic disorder your risk of developing the condition is increased by 10-20%. About 40% of people with agoraphobia have a close relative with agoraphobia. Anxiety disorders running through families may be due to the similarities between family members in the genetic elements of their responses to stress. 

Neurological causes
Disturbances in chemical messengers in the brain active during a period of anxiety can lead to malfunctioning of the body’s natural alarm system to create an anxiety disorder. An increased sensitivity of pathways of chemical messengers in the brain could be the cause of the physiological crisis that results in panic. Physiological causes of anxiety may also be brought on by environmental and psychological causes.

Physical causes
In very rare cases, a tumour of the adrenal gland (pheochromocytoma) may be the cause of anxiety. This happens because of the overproduction of hormones responsible for the feeling and symptoms of anxiety.

Psychologically, anxiety is viewed as a response to environmental stressors, such as the ending of a close relationship of exposure to a life-threatening disaster.

Psychoanalytic theory suggests that anxiety disorders are the result of unconscious conflicts related to some kind of discomfort during infancy or childhood. By this theory, anxiety can be resolved by identifying and resolving the unconscious conflict.

Learning theory suggests that anxiety is a learned behaviour that can be unlearned. People who feel uncomfortable in a given situation or near a certain object will begin to avoid it, and this allows them to continue to believe that the worst will happen if they come into contact with their object of fear, as they will have limited experience to show otherwise.

Drug use
Certain drugs, both recreational and prescribed can lead to symptoms of anxiety due to either side effects or withdrawal from the drug. Such drugs include: caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, cold remedies, decongestants, bronchodilators for asthma, tricyclic antidepressants, cocaine, amphetamines, diet pills, Ritalin and thyroid medications.