What is Medical Anxiety?

Can Your Body Be Causing Your Anxiety? The Medical & Gut Health Link You Need to Know

If you’ve been struggling with anxiety — racing thoughts, tight chest, stomach tension, or constant unease — and nothing seems to be working, it’s time to ask a deeper question:

What if your anxiety isn’t just psychological? What if it’s physical?

While anxiety is often treated as a mental health condition alone, more and more research shows that it can be rooted in your body — especially in your gut, your hormones, and your immune system.

This is the mind-body connection at work — and ignoring it can leave many people stuck in cycles of anxiety that don’t fully respond to traditional talk therapy or medication.

The Science: How Your Body Creates Anxiety

Your brain and your body are in constant communication. The gut-brain axis, inflammatory pathways, and hormonal feedback loops all play major roles in how you feel. When something is off in your body, your mind will often be the first to notice — in the form of worry, fear, panic, or restlessness.

Here are some common medical and gut health issues that can trigger or worsen anxiety symptoms:

1. Gut Health & Anxiety: The Gut-Brain Connection

Your gut is often called your “second brain.” That’s because it contains over 500 million neurons and produces about 90% of your serotonin — the neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood, sleep, and stress.

If your gut is inflamed, imbalanced, or under attack, your brain receives distress signals. This can lead to symptoms like:

• Panic attacks

• Chronic worry

• Irritability

• Brain fog

• Sleep issues

Common gut-related triggers of anxiety include:

• Leaky gut (intestinal permeability)

• Gut dysbiosis (imbalanced gut bacteria)

• Candida overgrowth

• Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO)

• Food intolerances (gluten, dairy, soy, etc.)

• Chronic bloating, IBS, or indigestion

When your gut microbiome is out of balance, it can cause low-grade inflammation throughout the body and brain, which in turn disrupts neurotransmitters and leads to anxiety.

2. Blood Sugar Dysregulation

If your blood sugar is constantly spiking and crashing, your body is living in survival mode. Low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) triggers a release of adrenaline and cortisol, which can feel exactly like a panic attack.

Signs your blood sugar may be contributing to anxiety:

• Shakiness, dizziness, or irritability between meals

• Intense cravings for sugar or carbs

• Anxiety or “hangry” episodes if you skip meals

• Waking up anxious at 3am

Stable blood sugar = a stable mood. Don’t underestimate the impact of what you eat (and when you eat it) on your anxiety levels.

3. Thyroid Issues

Your thyroid is the master regulator of your metabolism, energy, and mood. Both hypothyroidism (underactive) and hyperthyroidism (overactive) can mimic anxiety or worsen it.

Common symptoms include:

• Racing thoughts or heart palpitations

• Fatigue and low motivation

• Heat or cold sensitivity

• Muscle tension or brain fog

• Feeling “tired but wired”

Thyroid dysfunction is often missed or misdiagnosed — especially in women. A full thyroid panel (not just TSH) is essential if you're experiencing stubborn anxiety symptoms.

4. Chronic Inflammation & Autoimmunity

Ongoing inflammation doesn’t just affect joints or digestion — it affects your brain chemistry. Inflammatory cytokines can suppress serotonin and dopamine, leading to anxiety, depression, and mood swings.

Autoimmune conditions (like Hashimoto’s, lupus, or rheumatoid arthritis) are also strongly linked to anxiety disorders — especially when inflammation targets the gut or brain.

Look out for:

• Fatigue + anxiety combo

• Brain fog

• Food sensitivities

• Fluctuating symptoms

If you’ve been diagnosed with an autoimmune condition, supporting your immune system and reducing inflammation can dramatically improve your mental health.

5. Nutrient Deficiencies

Even mild deficiencies in key nutrients can throw your nervous system out of balance. Some of the most important nutrients for mood regulation and anxiety relief include:

• Magnesium – calms the nervous system and regulates cortisol

• Vitamin D – supports immunity, hormone balance, and mood

• Vitamin B12 & Folate – essential for energy and neurotransmitter production

• Zinc – involved in brain function and gut lining repair

• Omega-3s – reduce inflammation and support mental clarity

A simple blood test can often reveal deficiencies that are easily corrected with targeted nutrition or supplementation.

Testing to Consider If You Have Chronic Anxiety

If you suspect your anxiety might have a medical or physiological root, here are some helpful tests to discuss with your GP or integrative practitioner:

• Comprehensive thyroid panel (TSH, Free T3, Free T4, Reverse T3, antibodies)

• Fasting insulin and glucose

• HbA1c (for long-term blood sugar trends)

• Vitamin D, B12, magnesium, iron

• Stool test (for gut microbiome and inflammation)

• C-reactive protein (CRP) or homocysteine (inflammation markers)

• Food sensitivity testing (optional, for gut-driven symptoms)

Remember: anxiety isn’t just in your head — and healing can begin by looking into your body.

You’re Not “Crazy.” You’re Biologically Out of Balance

If you’ve been gaslit, dismissed, or told to “just manage stress better,” know this: you are not weak, broken, or overreacting.

Many people who suffer from chronic anxiety are dealing with a physical imbalance that’s never been properly addressed. When you calm the body, nourish the system, and bring the gut and brain back into sync — anxiety often melts away naturally.

Therapy Is Still Key — But So Is Listening to the Body

As a therapist, I fully believe in the power of trauma healing, subconscious work, and nervous system regulation. But I also believe that true healing happens when we treat the whole person — not just the mind.

If your anxiety hasn’t responded to therapy alone, it might be time to look deeper — into your body, your gut, and your cellular environment.