What Causes Anxiety? Understanding the Symptoms of Anxiety

.

Anxiety is one of the most common reasons people seek counselling, yet it remains one of the most misunderstood. Many people blame themselves for feeling anxious, believing they should be “stronger”, “calmer”, or “more in control”. But anxiety isn’t a personal weakness — it’s a natural human response that becomes overwhelming when the mind and body slip out of balance.

Understanding what actually causes anxiety is the first step in reducing its power. When you know why your body reacts the way it does, you can begin to interrupt the cycle and regain a sense of steadiness.

In this article, we’ll explore the key factors that contribute to anxiety and what they mean for your wellbeing.

1. The Body’s Alarm System: Biology and the Fight-or-Flight Response (aka "the symptoms of anxiety)

Your body has a built-in alarm system designed to keep you safe. When it senses a threat — whether real or imagined — it floods you with adrenaline and cortisol to prepare you to fight, run, or freeze.

The problem? Your brain can’t always tell the difference between danger and day-to-day stress.A difficult email, a tense conversation, or an unexpected change can trigger the same physiological response as genuine threat.

This means anxiety (the symptoms of anxiety) is often the body doing its best to protect you, even when protection isn’t needed.

2. Past Experiences and Trauma

Unresolved trauma, whether big and obvious or small and cumulative, can prime the nervous system to stay on high alert. When the body has learned that the world is unpredictable or unsafe, it becomes much quicker to activate anxiety.

Trauma doesn’t have to involve a single dramatic event. It can come from:

• long-term stress in childhood

• emotionally inconsistent caregiving

• bullying

• controlling or abusive relationships

• chronic pressure in adulthood

If past experiences taught your body to expect danger, present-day situations can feel far more threatening than they are.

3. Genetics and Temperament

Some people are simply wired to feel emotions more intensely. Genetics, temperament, and even early brain development all play a role in how sensitive your nervous system is.

This doesn’t mean anxiety is inevitable — it just means your system may react more quickly, making self-regulation and support especially important.

4. Lifestyle Factors That Build Pressure

Modern life pushes us into a constant state of “doing”, and the nervous system struggles to keep up. Anxiety can be significantly worsened by:

• lack of sleep

• high caffeine use

• irregular eating or blood sugar dips

• social isolation

• overworking

• digital overload

• lack of meaningful rest

These factors don’t cause anxiety on their own, but they lower resilience and increase vulnerability.

5. Thinking Patterns That Fuel the Cycle

The mind has a powerful influence on the body. Certain cognitive habits can magnify anxiety, including:

• catastrophising (“what if everything goes wrong?”)

• overthinking or mentally rehearsing danger

• black-and-white thinking

• perfectionism and self-criticism

• assuming others are judging or rejecting you

When your thoughts tell your body that something bad is about to happen, your biology responds accordingly.

6. Nervous System Dysregulation

The concept of the window of tolerance helps explain why anxiety feels unpredictable. When you’re within this window, you feel stable, present, and able to cope. But chronic stress, unresolved trauma or constant pressure can shrink this window, meaning it takes very little to tip you into fight-or-flight.

This is why anxiety can flare up even on days when “nothing is wrong”. Your system may simply be overloaded.

7. Social, Cultural and Environmental Pressures

We live in a world that expects constant productivity, emotional perfection, and instant responses. These cultural expectations create chronic stress, particularly when paired with financial pressure, relationship difficulty, or workplace demands.

When the environment feels unsafe or unpredictable, anxiety becomes the body’s attempt to stay prepared.

So, What Does This Mean for You?

If you experience anxiety, it doesn’t mean you’re weak, dramatic, or failing at life. It means your mind and body are reacting to pressure, history, or patterns that can absolutely be changed — gently and gradually.

Therapy helps by:

• increasing your window of tolerance

• calming the nervous system

• reframing unhelpful thinking patterns

• processing past experiences

• rebuilding a sense of safety in your body

• developing everyday strategies that make life feel manageable again

Anxiety is not your identity — it’s a signal from your system that something needs care.