Please read the passage and answer the questions that follow:
Mohan is a 16 years old boy studying in high school. He usually gets anxious in normal circumstances. He has bouts of anxiety attacks when his teachers give him any assignments. In normal times too, he shows symptoms like restlessness, sleeplessness, loss of appetite, frequent urination, rapid heart rate etc. He has unpleasant feelings of fear and apprehensions. After such observations his family members brought him to a psychologist for consultation. The psychologist took detailed information about his psychological attributes, history in the context of his physical & psycho-social environment and interviews with his parents. The parents recalled that their child has become anxious & fearful and is unable to relax. Gradually Mohan is isolating himself from all his near and dear ones.
_________ is defined as a diffused, vague, unpleasant feeling of fear & apprehension.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Anxiety
Option (1) Panic — Incorrect. A panic attack is an abrupt surge of intense anxiety rising to a peak, with shortness of breath, palpitations, chest pain and a fear of dying. It is sudden and intense, not diffuse and vague.
Option (2) Anxiety — Correct. The term anxiety is usually defined as a diffuse, vague, very unpleasant feeling of fear and apprehension. The anxious person also shows bodily symptoms such as rapid heart rate, sweating and sleeplessness.
Option (3) Stress — Incorrect. Stress is the response of the body and mind to stressors, events such as noise, crowding or a bad relationship that disrupt the individual. It is tied to a demand from the environment, while the feeling in the question has no clear object.
Option (4) Obsession — Incorrect. Obsessive behaviour is the inability to stop thinking about a particular idea or topic, which the person finds unpleasant and shameful. It is a repeated thought, not a vague feeling of fear.
NCERT (2025-26): “Anxiety Disorders … Everyone has worries and fears. The term anxiety is usually defined as a diffuse, vague, very unpleasant feeling of fear and apprehension. The anxious individual also shows combinations of the following symptoms: rapid heart rate, shortness of breath, diarrhoea, loss of appetite, fainting, dizziness, sweating, sleeplessness, frequent urination and tremors.…” “Anxiety Disorders … Another type of anxiety disorder is panic disorder, which consists of recurrent anxiety attacks in which the person experiences intense terror. A panic attack denotes an abrupt surge of intense anxiety rising to a peak when thoughts of a particular stimuli are present. Such thoughts occur in an unpredictable manner. The clinical features include shortness of breath, dizziness, trembling, palpitations, choking, nausea, chest pain or discomfort, fear of going crazy, losing control or dying.…” “Obsessive-Compulsive and Related Disorders … Obsessive behaviour is the inability to stop thinking about a particular idea or topic. The person involved, often finds these thoughts to be unpleasant and shameful.…” |