The science around mental health does not yet have clear answers. There are recent studies done on gut microbiota like this one and this one, and how manipulating the gut biome can have a modulating effect on anxiety-like behaviors. Science also suggests that the risk for anxiety disorders is influenced by genetic factors, environmental factors, and their epigenetic relations.
The human brain and body are very complex. We still have limited tools to study it. So with the bits and pieces of information we have, we are slowly uncovering the answers we need. Science has provided many of these answers. But there is not yet one single (or clear) answer as to why one child struggles more with anxiety as compared to the next.
There is no single gene for anxiety. Sure there are biological and environmental factors that all come into play including prenatal environment, traumatic events, Autism spectrum, etc. And it can be easy to assume that a certain environmental or biological factor is the single cause for anxiety. But it never really is. Another thing that doesn’t cause anxiety is parents. You simply cannot cause anxiety in your child. You are not the problem, but a powerful part of the solution. If you are struggling to be a mom and your child’s stand-in therapist, you don’t have to anymore. It’s not your job to be both. Reach out for help if your child’s daily life is being impacted by their anxiety, such as not wanting to go to school or go to parties anymore. Send me an email or find a mental health therapist you trust.
So what now? Well, the great news is that we don’t have to know exactly what caused it to know exactly what helps reduce it. There are highly effective ways of coping with anxiety, managing these intense emotions and reducing their BIG and immobilizing impact.
