Anxiety: Why Can’t I Just Relax?
When Calm Feels Out of Reach
You’re not imagining it the mental noise, racing heart, tight chest, and that ever-present feeling that something is “off.” Many of my clients describe anxiety as an ongoing sense of tension, overwhelm, or unease. They often say:
“I have a good life. Why can’t I just relax?”
“I’ve done the therapy, so why do I still feel like this?”
“Nothing’s wrong, but something doesn’t feel right.”
The truth is that anxiety isn’t always about what’s happening outside of you. Sometimes, it’s about what’s happening inside your body.
In functional medicine, we look to the gut, the brain, hormones, and the nervous system. Because your mind and body are deeply connected, calming anxiety is about more than just mindset; it’s about restoring balance across your whole system.
What Is Anxiety?
Anxiety is a normal stress response, but when that response gets stuck in “on” mode, it becomes chronic and exhausting. You might feel:
Wired but tired
Easily overwhelmed
Trouble sleeping or staying asleep
Restless thoughts that won’t settle
Sensitive to noise, light, or stimulation
Digestive issues or food intolerances
Mood swings or irritability
These are all signs your nervous system may be stuck in fight-or-flight mode, and your body hasn’t had the chance to return to rest.
The Nervous System: Like a Fire Alarm That Won’t Switch Off
Imagine your nervous system like a smoke detector. It’s designed to keep you safe by responding to danger. But sometimes, the alarm keeps going off even when there’s no fire. Over time, your body gets used to being on high alert.
In clinic, I see this “switched on” pattern all the time. The body is flooded with stress hormones, digestion slows down, the mind races, and even small triggers feel overwhelming. If you’ve felt like this for months (or even years), your body may have forgotten what true calm feels like.
The Gut-Brain-Hormone Connection
Your brain isn’t acting alone. Anxiety is closely linked to the gut, where around 90% of the body’s serotonin your “feel good and calm” chemical is produced via complex interactions between amino acids, beneficial bacteria, and the enteric nervous system (your internal autopilot) [1,2].
The enteric nervous system, often called the “second brain,” is a vast network of nerves lining your digestive tract. It influences how you feel, how you digest, and how your brain interprets stress or safety [3].
The surprising part: You don’t need obvious gut symptoms for your gut to play a role in anxiety. Many of my clients have no bloating or bowel changes, but testing reveals microbiome imbalances or low-grade inflammation silently influencing their mood and nervous system [4,5].
Common Patterns in Clinic
Anxiety often links to:
Gut microbiome imbalance or intestinal hyperpermeability
Disrupted cortisol rhythms
Poor sleep quality
Hormone imbalance (e.g. during perimenopause)
Blood sugar instability
Low nutrient reserves
Ongoing inflammation
These imbalances can keep your body in “high alert” mode even when life feels calm on the outside.
Looking Through a Different Lens
If anxiety feels persistent or unpredictable, we can explore how your body is responding using functional testing and clinical evaluation. This may include:
Gut health and digestive inflammation
Cortisol rhythms across the day
Hormone balance
Blood sugar control
Nutrient and inflammatory markers
A Brain Chemistry Shortfall or a Body System Overload?
Many people think anxiety is purely due to low serotonin or a chemical imbalance. While neurotransmitters play a role, research suggests inflammation, oxidative stress, and gut dysbiosis may underlie many modern cases of anxiety [6,7]. It’s not just about what’s missing, but also about what’s overactive. Chronic inflammation can impair communication between the gut and brain, while elevated cortisol can reduce your ability to produce calming neurotransmitters like GABA [8].
Nutrition and Anxiety – Food as Information, Not Just Fuel
Think of food not just as fuel, but as code your body reads. Every bite is information that can either calm or inflame your nervous system. Diets high in refined sugar, alcohol, and ultra-processed foods can increase anxiety by spiking blood sugar, impairing microbiome diversity, and creating inflammation [9]. On the flip side, foods rich in magnesium, omega-3s, B vitamins, and polyphenols from plants can support neurotransmitter balance, brain health, and emotional resilience [10,11].
Why Testing Matters: Uncovering the Hidden Influences
Functional testing helps us see what’s beneath the surface. I’ve worked with many clients whose pathology appears “normal” through standard channels, but advanced functional tests show cortisol dysregulation, bacterial overgrowth, or low nutrient levels driving their symptoms. For example, low levels of zinc or magnesium, common in anxious individuals, can impair GABA receptor function and promote hyperarousal of the nervous system [12,13].
Herbal and Nutritional Medicine – Rewiring the Overloaded System
When the nervous system is chronically overstimulated, it can feel like trying to drive with one foot on the accelerator and the other on the brake. You're pushing forward through daily life, but your body is signalling danger, tightness, or unease in the background. This is where herbal and nutritional medicine can become powerful tools in gently guiding your system back into a state of safety and rest.
Prescription-grade herbal blends and practitioner-prescribed nutraceuticals act like skilled mechanics, fine-tuning the body’s internal systems and gently supporting the nervous system’s ability to regulate itself. These formulations, tailored to your personal history and test results, may support neurotransmitter activity, assist in balancing cortisol rhythms, and reduce inflammatory signals that keep the body in high alert.
I like to think of it this way: your nervous system has simply forgotten how to downshift. Targeted herbal and nutritional support acts like a recalibration, helping the brain-gut-hormone circuitry remember what it feels like to be calm, clear, and steady again. They don’t suppress or override your emotions. Instead, they create the internal conditions where true regulation becomes possible.
This is not about masking symptoms. It’s about working at the roots. When combined with sleep restoration, nutrient repletion, digestive healing, and lifestyle rhythms, these prescriptions become part of a powerful, whole-body strategy to restore calm, clarity, and resilience from the inside out.
Support Beyond Talk Therapy
Many clients come to see me after working with a fantastic psychologist, counsellor, or GP. They might say:
“I’ve talked about it all, but I still feel anxious.”
“My life is good, I just don’t know why I feel this way.”
Mental health support from your psychologist and doctor is incredibly important, and I always encourage my clients to continue that care.
Where I come in is by offering a complementary perspective. I look at how your body may be contributing to ongoing anxiety through gut health, hormonal rhythm, nutrient status, and stress load. This isn’t a replacement for psychological support, it’s a partnership. Together, we can uncover how your body may need extra help regulating your emotions, restoring calm, and feeling grounded again.
Personalised Support for Long-Term Calm
Supporting anxiety isn’t about learning to “cope” better. It’s about helping your body feel safe, stable, and resilient again.
In clinic, I use customised strategies based on your personal history and testing. This may include:
Digestive and microbiome support
Nutritional and lifestyle guidance
Stress and nervous system education
Sleep rhythm support
Ongoing personalised care and review
There’s no one-size-fits-all. And that’s exactly why it works.
You Deserve to Feel Calm Again
If this blog speaks to you, please know that support is available. You're not meant to figure it out alone, and there's often a very real reason why relaxation feels out of reach.
Next Steps
New to the clinic?
Book your Initial Consultation – Discover Your Path. Let’s explore how your body may be contributing to anxiety in a personalised, whole-body way.
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Schedule a review to reassess anxiety, hormones, gut health, or functional testing.
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Written by Kylie Cloney BHSc. Complementary Medicine. Adv. Dip Nutr. Medicine.
Wellness for Life – Your Plan, Grounded in Science, Guided by Nature.
References
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Kennedy PJ, Cryan JF, Dinan TG, Clarke G. Irritable bowel syndrome: a microbiome gut brain axis disorder? World Journal of Gastroenterology. 2014;20(39):14105-14125. doi:10.3748/wjg.v20.i39.14105
Carabotti M, Scirocco A, Maselli MA, Severi C. The gut brain axis: interactions between enteric microbiota, central and enteric nervous systems. Annals of Gastroenterology. 2015;28(2):203-209.
Kelly JR, Borre Y, C OB, Patterson E, El Aidy S, Deane J, et al. Transferring the blues: depression associated gut microbiota induces neurobehavioural changes in the rat. Journal of Psychiatric Research. 2016;82:109-118. doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2016.07.019
Foster JA, Neufeld K-AM. Gut brain axis: how the microbiome influences anxiety and depression. Trends in Neurosciences. 2013;36(5):305 312. doi:10.1016/j.tins.2013.01.005
Maes M, Kubera M, Leunis JC. The gut brain barrier in major depression: intestinal mucosal dysfunction with an increased translocation of LPS from gram-negative enterobacteria (leaky gut) plays a role in the inflammatory pathophysiology of depression. Neuro Endocrinology Letters. 2008;29(1):117-124.
Leonard BE. Inflammation, depression and dementia: are they connected? Neurochemical Research. 2007;32(10):1749-1756. doi:10.1007/s11064-007-9385-y
McEwen BS. Protective and damaging effects of stress mediators. The New England Journal of Medicine. 1998;338(3):171-179. doi:10.1056/NEJM199801153380307
Jacka FN, Pasco JA, Mykletun A, Williams LJ, Hodge AM, O’Reilly SL, et al. Association of Western and traditional diets with depression and anxiety in women. American Journal of Psychiatry. 2010;167(3):305-311. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2009.09060881
Benton D. The influence of dietary status on the cognitive performance of children. Molecular Nutrition & Food Research. 2008;52(4):408-416. doi:10.1002/mnfr.200700158
Grosso G, Micek A, Marventano S, Castellano S, Mistretta A, Pajak A, et al. Dietary omega 3 fatty acids and depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2016;205:269-281. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2016.08.003
Disclaimer:
This post is for general education only and is not medical advice. Please consult your healthcare professional. See our Medical Disclaimer.