Krish Waje has spent most of her life in fight-or-flight mode.
That's how she describes living with anxiety, Australia's most common mental health condition which affects some 3.4 million people aged 16 to 84.
"You're always thinking about what's next and I'm always feeling on edge, especially if there's something important coming up," Ms Waje told AAP.
"It's just that constant feeling that your body is in flight-or-flight mode and it feels like I'm living in the future."
Ms Waje successfully tried medication but after years of working in Sydney's corporate world realised it was taking a toll on her health and that she needed a complete lifestyle change.
She moved to the Blue Mountains, started a candle business and has never been happier.
The 26-year-old's anxiety set in at a young age and she has always wondered where it comes from.
So she is keen to participate in new research to help unlock the condition's genetic secrets.
"I definitely want to be part of this study to help and see whether we can prevent, cure, treat a condition like this at an earlier stage for other people," Ms Waje said.
Scientists want to understand why some people develop anxiety disorders and why certain medications work better than others in different people.
One in five patients report severe side effects while more than two thirds might not respond well to medicine due to their genetics.
"We need to try and find as many genetic variants as we can that influence anxiety," lead investigator Sarah Medland said.
"We currently know about around 60 different genetic variants, but there's actually going to be hundreds of thousands that contribute."
Professor Medland and her colleagues at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute have called on 5000 Australians to take part in Living With Anxiety research.
Anyone with the condition is welcome to contribute.
The researchers are looking for people who have had both good and bad treatment experiences.
It involves an online questionnaire and - if participants feel comfortable - providing a sample of their spit which can be done at home.
Prof Medland hopes the findings will be used to help develop more personalised treatments and reduce stress for patients.
"Anxiety is common but it is something that we can help treat and if people are experiencing anxiety or mental health problems, please reach out," she said.
Ms Waje wants Australians living with the condition to know there's nothing to be ashamed of and they are not alone.
"You don't have to keep it within yourself, " she said.
"There's avenues out there to get help and we want to lead that change to normalise that it's OK to not be OK."
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