Which of the following best matches the signs assessed for anxiety?

Study for ELNEC 4: Symptom Management in Palliative Care Test with flashcards and multiple choice questions. Hints and explanations included! Get ready for your exam!

Multiple Choice

Which of the following best matches the signs assessed for anxiety?

Anxiety shows up as a mix of thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and bodily sensations. The signs listed—persistent worry and apprehension, stress, trouble relaxing, concentration difficulties, and sleep disruption—reflect the cognitive and emotional side of anxiety. Added to that, autonomic arousal such as sweating, rapid heartbeat, breathing changes, tremors, restlessness, and agitation captures the physical reactiveness that often accompanies anxiety. Recurrent distressing thoughts and fears like “fear of going crazy” or “fear of dying” illustrate the worry and fear that can dominate the individual's mental state. This combination of persistent worry, difficulty calming down, sleep and concentration problems, and somatic arousal is characteristic of anxiety in palliative care, making this option the best match. The other options don’t fit because they describe signs not typical of anxiety—for example, symptoms like weight gain with a calm mood or increased appetite and energy don’t align with the anxious state, and muscle weakness with constipation can point to other issues or medication effects rather than anxiety.

Anxiety shows up as a mix of thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and bodily sensations. The signs listed—persistent worry and apprehension, stress, trouble relaxing, concentration difficulties, and sleep disruption—reflect the cognitive and emotional side of anxiety. Added to that, autonomic arousal such as sweating, rapid heartbeat, breathing changes, tremors, restlessness, and agitation captures the physical reactiveness that often accompanies anxiety. Recurrent distressing thoughts and fears like “fear of going crazy” or “fear of dying” illustrate the worry and fear that can dominate the individual's mental state. This combination of persistent worry, difficulty calming down, sleep and concentration problems, and somatic arousal is characteristic of anxiety in palliative care, making this option the best match.

The other options don’t fit because they describe signs not typical of anxiety—for example, symptoms like weight gain with a calm mood or increased appetite and energy don’t align with the anxious state, and muscle weakness with constipation can point to other issues or medication effects rather than anxiety.

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