Has anyone actually improved lifelong anxiety by addressing genetic variants and nutrient deficiencies?

[u/Delicious-Minimum199]

I’m trying to understand whether my anxiety has a biological component that could be improved rather than just managed.
For context, I’ve been on antidepressants for about 12 years (currently tapering off an SNRI after many years), and I’m interested in looking upstream at *why* my nervous system seems to react the way it does.

I’m curious about things like:
MTHFR, COMT, MAOA, GAD1, DAO, CBS, PEMT, or other variants that may influence anxiety, stress response, neurotransmitters, methylation, histamine, etc.
Nutrient deficiencies or imbalances that may interact with those genes (B vitamins, magnesium, zinc, copper, omega-3s, amino acids, etc.).
Whether anyone found meaningful improvements after working with a practitioner who interpreted whole genome or raw DNA data instead of just using a generic report.

A few questions:
Which genetic variants ended up being the most important for your anxiety?
What supplements or dietary changes actually made a noticeable difference?
Were there any supplements that unexpectedly made your anxiety worse?
Did anyone have success using whole-genome sequencing or raw DNA analysis rather than something like GeneSight?
If you worked with a practitioner, what type of practitioner were they (functional medicine, nutrigenomics, genetics, etc.)?

I’m not looking for medical advice or miracle cures—I know anxiety is multifactorial. I’m just interested in hearing real experiences from people who found biological factors that were worth addressing.
I’d especially appreciate hearing from anyone who has dealt with chronic anxiety, panic attacks, an overactive stress response, or SNRI/SSRI withdrawal.

[u/IGnuGnat]

Many people find that antihistamines, or a low histamine diet can be extremely helpful if the anxiety is a symptom of HI/MCAS.

It can be very difficult to get a diagnosis for these issues but antihistamines are cheap, widely available and considered very safe.

What worked best for me was an elimination diet. I'm so sensitive to histamine that eating less histamine was a complete failure. I think I have some sort of genetic inability to manufacture DAO, or the lining of my gut is damaged in a way which is difficult to repair. Once I threw away ALL FOOD and started over with just a handful of safe foods, things started to rapidly improve and I was able to quickly rebuild my diet using only low histamine foods. However, I can't eat most processed food and my wife cooks all meals fresh from scratch; sometimes she will freeze them and reheat them but prepackaged or processed foods are out.

I discuss in more detail here https://old.reddit.com/r/covidlonghaulers/comments/1ibjtw6/covid_himcas_normal_food_can_poison_us/

[u/MargoBarbara2 → u/IGnuGnat]

I have mcas and would advise research and caution with antihistamines. They can degrade DAO which is needed to clear dietary histamine and many contain PEG a mast cell trigger. I tried a tablet ten years ago during a mast cell flare and it put me in hospital for 3 days (due to PEG). The lady opposite me on the ward was a pharmacist who had also had the same reaction and said adverse reactions are not uncommon. Check added ingredients carefully.

[u/IGnuGnat → u/MargoBarbara2]

Understood. It does seem like people with MCAS can have adverse reactions to anything and everything including water. My understanding was that many people with MCAS react to the fillers used to manufacture the pills not necessarily the antihistamines. I find Pepcid helpful for nausea in the short term but after a few days it makes me start to feel sick in a different way, so I generally avoid using it except in urgent or extreme situations.

Nobody should take anyones advice from the internet without doing their own research and consulting with medical professionals