Are women’s brains more prone to anxiety than men?
Female brains are very different from male brains, which explains why females tend to have more worry than males. Here are some reasons why women are more prone to worry. First of all, there are a few basic structural differences between the two types of brains. Female brains typically have a larger prefrontal cortex (PFC); therefore, there is greater activity in the area of executive function (i.e. conscientiousness, decision making, and impulse control.) This can also mean that there is a lot more evaluation occurring in the female brain that stems from and affects many other areas of the brain. There is also more white matter in this area of the female brain, which means it is more connected to other areas of the brain. Men, on the other hand, are much more compartmentalized.
With all of this activity connected in the brain, women tend to be able to see the bigger picture, and in fact many versions of that bigger picture. They also tend to imagine different outcomes in order to try to avoid certain outcomes. These are busy brains!
How female brains assess, predict & process outcomes
There is also a difference between male and female brains in an area called the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a part of the brain that helps shift attention and recognize errors. When this area is overactive, people may get stuck on negative thoughts or negative behaviors, and there can be a tendency to see more of what is wrong than what is right. Women typically have more activity in part of their ACC’s than men do. Additionally, researchers have found that serotonin production was 52% greater in men than in women. Serotonin is one of the hormones in the brain that makes people feel good; it is associated with mood, sleep patterns, pain, and appetite issues. Having low serotonin levels is associated with over activity in the worry and mood centers of the brain.
So now we see that women’s brains have more prefrontal activity, more ACC activity, and lower levels of serotonin. Often, when women are concerned about something, their active executive functioning and associative thinking quickly connects one idea to another to avoid negative outcomes, and does not have the effect of serotonin to help diminish the feeling that something is wrong, or that something needs to be fixed. While men are certainly concerned about things as well, they usually are more apt at compartmentalizing and are generally quicker to brush something off as non-threatening. This tendency towards worry of a woman’s brain can be a blessing or a curse: it can assess situations, predict for future negative outcomes, and correct as necessary OR it can become overactive and lead to worry, anxiety, and even depression. There is a balance though, and in that balance a little bit of “worry” (or concern) can be really healthy.
Worry’s impact on individuals and relationships
One study showed that a first-time mother’s brain activity during sleep radically shifts after her baby is born; the hyperactivity of the worry centers of the brain doesn’t decrease during sleep. In this we can see how a woman is naturally built to be constantly concerned about the safety and wellbeing of her family. While a man’s brain activity does not change much after the birth of a child, a woman’s brain changes to better take in information and assess it in order to stay more attuned to what’s going on around her, whether asleep or awake!
A stereotypical example of a difference between men and women is the “asking for directions” anecdote. Usually men are blamed as prideful or stubborn, but it may just be that men don’t realize they are actually lost in the same way women do. As a couple drives around directionless, the man and woman see the situation very differently: serotonin is calming a man’s nerves while a woman’s ACC is processing the errors they have already made and her PFC is sending strong signals to pull over and get directions. Meanwhile, the man usually thinks, “We’ll get there.”
It should make sense, then, that women are more prone to anxiety, depression, and worry, and also respond better to the types of treatment for these issues that helps to increase the amount of available serotonin.