Here are some symptoms of stress. Complete each statement by choosing the correct word or phrase from the brackets.

1 Wanting to be (forgetful / alone) all the time.

2 Feeling you have (too few / too many) things to do.

3 Losing your (personality / temper) with friends or family for no good reason.

4 Lacking in (qualities / energy) and feeling (exhausted / cheerful) all the time.

5 Suffering from (headaches / stomach aches) and having trouble (knowing /concentrating) at school.

6 Not being able to (wash / sleep).

7 Not (winning / enjoying) activities that you used to like doing.

8 Suffering from lack of (patience / knowledge).

Deal with it

Dr Donna writes an advice column in the magazine Teen First. This week, she's talking about dealing with stress. She gave some recommendations to her readers.

Read the suggestions below and cross out those Dr Donna did not write.

1 Try to get at least nine hours' sleep several times each week.

2 Listen to loud rock music regularly.

3 Eat a balanced diet every day.

4 Take deep breaths if you feel stressed. Breathe slowly in and out for two minutes standing still.

5 Lose your temper with your friends and shout at them.

6 Have a favourite way of unwinding like doing sport, going for a walk, taking a bath or reading a good book.

7 Do something for somebody else.

8 Take out your stress and frustration on somebody else.

9 Exercise on a daily basis.

Avoiding stress in the first place

Can you put the two halves of these sentences together so that each one gives a suggestion for avoiding stressful situations? There are more second halves than you need.

1 Learn how to break

2 Make time for yourself when you

3 Learn how to say 'no'

4 Always prepare yourself

5 Build up good friendships so that

6 Set realistic

7 Try to understand when

8 Always have a schedule and

a. properly for any big tasks you have to complete

b. you can talk to people you trust about things that worry you

c. someone does something that you do not like

d. goals for yourself in your mind

e. big tasks you have to do into small, manageable chunks

f. put unimportant things at the end

g. do not listen to anything other people tell you

h. just do an activity you know you enjoy doing

i. ignore things you do not want to hear

j. politely and mean what you say

Vocabulary building

Which words in the above article have the following meanings? Pick out each word and then use it in a sentence of your own.

doing something very well (adv) - efficiently

e.g. Miss Chan did all the things I had asked her to do efficiently and on time.

1 a report about people's opinions or behaviour written after they have been asked lots of relevant questions (n)

2 very, very tired (adj)

3 the absence of something or when there is not enough of it (n)

4 a suggestion that something is good or suitable for a particular purpose or job (n)

5 doing something repeatedly in a fixed pattern (adv)

6 a mixture of the correct types and amounts of food (n)

7 the feeling that you are being prevented from doing something by someone or something out of your control (n)

Answers:

Symptoms: 1. alone; 2. too many; 3. temper; 4. energy, exhausted; 5. headaches, concentrating; 6. sleep; 7. enjoying; 8. patience

Deal with it: cross out 2; 5; 8

Avoiding stress: 1. e; 2. h; 3.j; 4. a; 5. b; 6. d; 7. c; 8. f

Vocabulary building: 1. survey; 2. exhausted; 3. a lack of; 4. recommendation; 5. regularly; 6. balanced diet; 7. frustration