Is Anxiety Genetic?

It’s such a common question, is anxiety genetic? Have I got someone else to thank for all this anxiety? Well from the research I’ve come across it seems the answer is yes, kinda.

Scientists have worked out that if you have particular genes you are more likely to develop an anxiety disorder. That doesn’t necessarily mean you will but you’ve a higher chance of developing anxiety than say those without those particular genes.

Research has identified two parts to why we develop anxiety. Firstly genetics plays a role, however our environment and experiences have an influence also.

Anxiety Exposure Categories

Anxiety is generally separated into two exposure categories. Firstly assaultive trauma, things like sexual assaults or robberies. Secondly, no assaultive trauma e.g. motor vehicle accidents, earthquakes or other natural disasters.

Can you Inherit anxiety?

Is anxiety genetic or hereditary? So if your family has a history of anxiety, what you are inheriting is a higher risk of developing anxiety . That’s not to say you will get those genes, it may skip you altogether.

Your anxiety may also appear differently to what your family exhibits. Same goes for passing it on to your descendants.

Anxiety and Environmental Factors

It’s generally agreed on by researches that anxiety is somewhat hereditary. However there is also a consensus around environment factors playing a part.

Where does anxiety come from?

• You are predisposed to anxiety if you inherited some anxiety genes from your ancestors.
• You can still develop anxiety disorders even without having the ‘anxiety genes’
• Traumatic experiences can be a cause in developing anxiety disorders
• Some physical conditions are associated with anxiety – Thyroid
• Some medications can also contribute to anxiety

So is anxiety genetic? The research suggests that you can inherit genes that make you more susceptible to developing some types of anxiety. Although studies have also shown those who are not predisposed to anxiety can develop an anxiety disorder. Through environment factors like sexual assault or other traumatic event.