Read the passage below and answer the questions as instructed:-
Driving back home Shriya experienced increased heart beat, shortness of breath, dizziness, trembling, palpitations and she started having a feeling of discomfort. She was so scared that she stopped the car and sat on the pavement. In the next few months, frequency of these attacks increased, and the fear of being caught in the traffic was so high that she stopped driving. She felt that she was going crazy and losing control on herself.
High level of anxiety that is distressing and interferes with effective functioning indicates:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Anxiety Disorder
Option (1) Examination Anxiety — Incorrect. Feeling anxious while waiting to take an examination is normal and expected, and it even motivates us to do the task well. It does not, by itself, interfere with functioning.
Option (2) Normal Anxiety — Incorrect. Normal anxiety is the everyday worry before a test, a visit to the dentist or a solo performance. It is mild and useful, the very opposite of anxiety that is distressing and disabling.
Option (3) Psychotic Disorder — Incorrect. Psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia are marked by a loss of contact with reality, with delusions and hallucinations. A high level of anxiety does not mean the person has lost touch with reality.
Option (4) Anxiety Disorder — Correct. Anxiety becomes a disorder when it is out of proportion: high levels of anxiety that are distressing and interfere with effective functioning indicate an anxiety disorder, the most common category of psychological disorders.
NCERT (2025-26): “Anxiety Disorders … We experience anxiety when we are waiting to take an examination, or to visit a dentist, or even to give a solo performance. This is normal and expected and even motivates us to do our task well. On the other hand, high levels of anxiety that are distressing and interfere with effective functioning indicate the presence of an anxiety disorder — the most common category of psychological disorders.…” |