Anxiety disorder caused by a “chemical imbalance” in the brain: untrue

In a recent online poll we conducted at our website, 79.8 percent of respondents said they believed anxiety disorder was caused by a biological problem or chemical imbalance in the brain.

In another recent poll we conducted, 78.4 percent of respondents said they believed anxiety disorder was genetically inherited.

While we expected many people to believe anxiety disorder is genetically inherited or caused by a “chemical” or “biological” problem with the brain, we were surprised to see how many people believed these notions.

These high percentages were surprising for us since anxiety is NOT caused by a chemical imbalance or biological problem in the brain or caused by genetics. I know many people, including many in the medical profession, have been led to believe that these notions are true, but the facts and evidence suggest otherwise. In fact, new research continues to disprove these notions as a cause of anxiety and depressive disorders. Our personal experiences with these disorders and professional experiences as coaches/counselors/therapists agree with the latest research.

If you believe that anxiety and depressive disorders are caused by a “chemical imbalance” in the brain or genetic predisposition, you may want to click here and discover what new research and others are saying about these false notions.

SKYPE LIVE Call-In sessions.

There are now over 8 hours of audio clips of members' conversations with Jim Folk about a variety of anxiety topics, including how to manage the "crazy thoughts" symptoms, how to deal with dizziness, how to deal with worry, how to deal with breathing symptoms, and how to deal with persistent symptoms, to name a few.

Any member can participate in these sessions. The next SKYPE LIVE Call-In session is Thursday, July 23 at 11 AM MST. For more information, see the members home page.

I’m always worried about my health. I worry that I have, or will get, a deadly disease. I can’t stop thinking about it. What can I do to overcome this?

A great many people struggle with health fears because health fears often are closely associated with core fears: those fears at the root of our anxieties. For example, core fears commonly associated with health fears include, the fear of death and dying, the fear of pain and suffering, the fear of loss, the fear of uncertainty, the fear of being out of control, the fear of being alone, and the fear of what happens after death.

While some people can come to healthier terms with their core fears, a therapist is almost always required to help resolve them because core fears are so central to our psyche.

Since we learn our fears, we often have what we believe are good reasons to have them. Therefore most of us aren’t able to convince ourselves of a less fearful view of them. A professional therapist, however, can help in this process by helping you discover the reasons for your fears, and then by providing you with healthier ways of viewing them so that their threat isn’t as relevant.

Because the success rate of using self-help materials alone to resolve core fears is low, again, we recommend working with an experienced anxiety disorder therapist to overcome your health fears. We also recommend working with a therapist who has had anxiety and has had to resolve health fears in his or her own life. It is our opinion that therapists who were merely trained in resolving core fears aren’t as effective as those who have successfully done it in their own lives. There’s something to be said for those who have had to walk the walk, and not just talk the talk.

For more information about common anxiety symptoms, anxiety therapy, anxiety cure, anxiety treatment, anxiety attacks, and anxiety disorders.

Have a great week!