Generalized anxiety disorder or GAD is not an uncommon condition, and this should come as no surprise since life nowadays has changed tremendously from the days of our forefathers. Generalized anxiety disorder is when you continuously experience unexplained anxiety attacks over a period of at least six months.
The causes of generalized anxiety disorder remain the same as in the time of our forefathers, but because there are more things to deal with today than there were several decades ago, there have been more reported cases of generalized anxiety disorder.
Of course, the exact cause of this condition still cannot be accurately pinpointed, however, there are some factors that contribute to generalized anxiety disorder. These factors are environmental stress, genetics, and brain chemistry.
Of these three factors, the most changed over the years is environmental stress. This can cover a whole range of situations and conditions from death, divorce, abuse, trauma, changes in environment, and excessive negative interactions with adults and peers.
For instance, when a family moves to another state, there is a tremendous amount of changes they will have to face. A new neighborhood, school, church, city laws and ordinances are just some of the environmental chaos waiting for them to adjust to, and many times, the need to adjust is immediate and real with very little allowance.
If a child experiences abuse while growing up – whether physical or verbal, this experience will haunt him for many years until he gets some form of counseling and treatment. What’s more, this kind of trauma and abuse can be passed on from generation to generation. There is a tendency to repeat what one has experienced when he grows up and has his own family.
The other cause for generalized anxiety disorder is genetics. Research has shown that this kind of condition can be passed on. The role of genetics has not been confirmed but the indications are very strong, and there are many cases of one child in a family exhibiting the same symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder as the parent or grandparent has. This is one of the reasons why intermarriage among family like cousins marrying cousins are strongly discouraged. It is also one of the reasons for blood testing before marriage in some countries.
The last cause for generalized anxiety disorder is brain chemistry. Brain chemistry will be a contributing factor to generalized anxiety disorder if there are unusual fluctuations in the hormonal levels or imbalances in the neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters is the part of the brain that allows the brain cells to communicate with each other.
The causes of generalized anxiety disorder gets even more complicated if it is a combination of these three factors. There are many indications that show that generalized anxiety disorder is caused by environment and brain chemistry, or brain chemistry and genetics, or all three. This is what makes it sometimes difficult to diagnose and also the reason why doctors demand to have the family medical history to help them when there is a suspicion of some kind of behavioral disorder.