Neuroticism is a frustrating condition. Neuroses can be referred to as anxious symptoms or behaviors.
It’s crucial to remember that they can be personality traits.
But, there are different causes for neuroticism.
Neuroticism tends to be an anxious state for an extended period. There are many reasons that a person could be neurotic, and it’s critical to know what they are.
You can learn more about the topic of neuroticism and its causes in this series of BetterHelp articles.
Here are some reasons a person could be neurotic and recognize the signs and symptoms.
Unpleasant experiences
According to Freud, neuroticism is primarily caused by trauma or a bad experience. For example, if someone is afraid of spiders, it may be that they were bitten by one.
Therefore, they have neurotic behavior surrounding spiders. Traumatic experiences can shape the way we behave in everyday life.
The person who is scared of spiders may have neuroses surrounding them that manifest differently.
Perhaps they can’t look at pictures of spiders.
Maybe they’re afraid to be around the creatures in person.
They could struggle to celebrate Halloween because spiders are involved. These behaviors are all due to the traumatic event of being bitten by a spider.
Being neurotic could be due to trauma, or it also could be due to a mental health condition.
Neuroses and mental health
People who have anxiety can be neurotic.
They may persistently worry or ruminate about different things.
Perhaps they have difficulty letting go of a conversation that upset them. That could result in neurotic behavior.
Maybe they keep texting the person who they spoke to in an attempt to resolve the matter.
No matter how many times that individual reassures them or doesn’t respond, they keep trying to ask for a resolution. They’re upset, and they want to resolve their anxiety surrounding it.
People with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder also tend to have neurotic tendencies.
These individuals may engage in repetitive behaviors or focus on intrusive thoughts and can’t seem to detach from either of these things.
Neuroticism could be due to mental illness or part of a person’s personality.
Neurotic behavior or neuroses due to mental illness?
Mental illnesses can cause neuroses. A person with anxiety or OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder or PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) may be neurotic.
It’s essential to recognize that your neuroses due to a mental illness are impacting you to get a handle on them. Sometimes people have neurotic behavior that’s not due to a mental illness.
They may be using the behavior to cope with being anxious that isn’t working, but that doesn’t mean that they have an anxiety disorder.
Maybe you’re struggling to get a project done, and instead of starting it, you worry and obsess about the task.
No matter how hard you try, it’s all you can think about.
That’s considered neurotic behavior due to a situation that’s causing a person anxiety. It doesn’t mean that person has a mental illness.
Neuroses and genetics
Neuroticism could be due to genetics if someone in your family has a mental illness where neuroses are a symptom. You may have inherited that mental health condition and have neurotic behavior.
It’s not your fault if you suffer from a mental health condition.
You can talk to a therapist about these issues and get the help you need to manage the behaviors.
It’s possible to learn coping strategies for neurotic behavior.
Modeling behavior or nurture
It may be “nurture” that’s causing your behaviors. Maybe you witnessed a parent, caregiver, or close loved one who exhibited neurotic behavior.
As a result, you modeled those actions.
It’s not only mental illness or genetics that can cause neuroses. You could have modeled your behavior after a peer or classmate.
Maybe you had a hard time managing anxiety and turned to neurotic behavior because you saw that it seemed to work for someone close to you.
For example, perhaps your mother didn’t allow anyone to touch her collection of antique plates.
She stored them in a cabinet and would count the plates to see if they were all there every day.
She couldn’t relax until she performed that behavior. You saw this behavior and wouldn’t let people touch your stuffed animals.
It seemed to be how your mother treated and protected what was essential to her. You started counting to see if all your stuffed animals were present in your room as a child each day.
You modeled your neurotic behavior after your mom. Neuroticism can be due to mental health issues or modeling how others manage their anxiety.
Talk about neuroticism with a mental health professional
If you’re struggling with neurotic behavior, no matter what the cause, you can always discuss it with a mental health professional.
There’s no harm in reaching out for help if you need it. You don’t have to let neuroses prevent you from enjoying life.
It’s okay to admit you’re struggling with problematic behavior.
A therapist can support you in discovering the source of the neuroticism and help you figure out some coping skills to manage it.