When going through times of great stress, I often see that the most natural response is not the healthiest one, but rather one of frustration. It is common to be mad or upset with oneself; “Why can’t I accomplish this? Why am I so lousy at that? What is wrong with me?” are all questions I have asked myself before. The natural response seems to be to question what is going wrong inside of you, and to try to change that. While introspection is a beautiful tool to discover what you truly need to flourish, many argue there is often too much reliance on it. The question we should be asking instead is: “What is happening around me that is making me respond with such stress?”
To answer this, science is our friend. Epigenetics is the study of how developmental biology and genetics are linked (Holliday, 2006). Instead of focusing entirely on what genes we were born with, and how that may determine our fate, it instead postulates that our environment determines which of many genes are activated, suggesting environment is the most important factor in what genes are “turned on”. Environment is the society we’re raised in; our friends, what bed you slept in, how you were parented, etc. For example, a child who experiences abuse is much more likely to develop depressive and psychotic symptoms in adulthood than those who haven’t been abused (Muenzenmaier et al., 1993). Epigenetic theory suggests that perhaps these people had the genes that make them predisposed to depression, but those genes were only turned on because of a certain environmental trigger, such as abuse. In this way, epigenetics suggests that we can change our genetics depending on what environment we are in.
Society asks how to alleviate mental illness symptoms, but according to epigenetics, we should instead be asking how to address the cause of these issues. We don’t seem to be discussing the root cause of mental illness, and are instead focusing on the by-products of mental illness.
Stress and anxiety are a natural response to the societal pressures we face daily. When that stress and anxiety becomes out of our control, it’s helpful to analyze why our body is reacting that way rather than belittling ourselves for feeling that way. How can you change your environment to better suit your needs?
Your body is on your side. When it produces stress hormones in excess, it’s asking you to change something. Listen to it. It’s okay to change degrees, to move cities, to take a break from schooling or to discontinue altogether. Do what feels right to you, and understand that reversing your brain chemistry takes a lot of work, but is possible in the right environment. Remember that there are a wide variety of mental health services available to you through UBC, or through health care providers outside of the school that can provide additional help if you need it!
Written By Taryn Nowak-Stoppel
Citations:
Holliday, R. (2006). Epigenetics: A Historical Overview. Epigenetics, 1(2), pp.76-80.
Muenzenmaier, K., Struening, E., Ferber, J. and Meyer, I. (1993). Childhood Abuse and Neglect Among Women Outpatients With Chronic Mental Illness. PS, 44(7), pp.666-670.