You’ve likely never heard of Hoxb8-lineage microglia cells, but they play a very important role in your brain: regulating anxiety and OCD. In experiments with mice, alteration of these brain cells was found to have no impact on cognitive development but did affect OCD behaviors, such as excessive grooming.
While this research by no means offers a cure for anxiety (we still have a long way to go before chronic stress is truly a thing of the past), it lays the foundation for how we can treat anxiety-related conditions. As for now, your best bet for overcoming anxiety is exercise, therapy, or whatever else helps you quell chronic stress.
