MODULE 5: COPING WITH

STRESS IN MIDDLE AND

LATE ADOLESCENCE
 OBJECTIVES

1. Discuss that understanding stress

and its sources during adolescence
may help in identifying ways to cope
and have a healthful life.
2. Identify sources of your stress and
illustrates the effect of stress on your
system.
3. Demonstrate personal ways of
coping with stress for healthful life.
 ACTIVITY: STRESS BINGO

Copy the bingo card in your journal.

Find someone who regularly participates
in one of these activities. Ask him/her to
sign his/her name in the appropriate box.
Find a different person for each box.
Wait for your teacher to call out the type
of BINGO activity.
STRESS
 STRESS
 Stress is the body’s
response to
anything that makes
us feel threatened
or pressured.
 STRESS
 It is caused by any
kind of demand, to
which we must
adapt, adjust, or
respond.
STRESS
 It is the body’s
automatic way of
reacting to changes,
challenges, and
demands placed on
us.
 Two common
sources of Stress

CHANGE LOSS
 Common experiences of students

MIGRATION Death of
Grandparent

Breaking up
with boyfriends
or girlfriends
Changes in PARENT’S
peer group SEPARATING
STRESS MANAGEMENT
 A practical way of defining stress is the
feeling one gets from prolonged, pent-up
emotions. If the emotions you experience
are pleasant and desirable – joy, elation,
ecstasy, delight – you usually feel free to let
them show. They are not suppressed.
 Positive Emotions do not usually
cause stress. Negative emotions are more
often held inside. They are hidden. You
suffer quietly and you experience stress.
Do not confuse positive situations with
positive emotions.
CAUSES AND
EFFECTS OF
STRESS
 ANXIETY TENSION

PRESSURE ANGER

MISERY PANIC

STRAIN DEJECTION

DESPERATION
Prolong stress can be
devastating; burnout,
breakdown, and depression
are some of the potential
results of long-term,
unmanaged stress.
 Everyday frustrations cause stress build-up

Problems in our life can be devastating

A common cause of stress is dealing with life’s

transitions
 ACTIVITY:
WHAT CAUSES
YOU TO “LOSE
YOUR COOL”?
 We all have certain things, situations, or
people that cause us to lose our composure
from time to time. Determine what causes
YOU to “lose your cool” by completing this
activity. When you to identify your stressors,
you can become skilled at preventing negative
consequences. Place an X next to each factor
that causes you stress. There are blank
spaces provided so you can add your own.
_____ being late _____ chores
_____ too much homework _____ lack of sleep
_____ speaking in public _____ no date for a dance
_____ babysitting _____ pimples
_____ going to dentist _____ physical education class
_____ parents fighting _____ math class
_____ getting detention _____ English class
_____ your job _____ other class _____
_____ taking tests _____ boredom
_____ video games _____ rude people
_____ using a computer _____ no money
_____ restrictions at home _____ no transportation
_____ playing on sports team _____ loud people
_____ not being included in a sports team _____ baby crying
_____ losing something valuable _____ disrespectful children
_____ closed-in spaces _____ a friend betrays you
_____ commercials _____
_____ interruptions while busy _____
_____ getting an injection _____
_____ arguments with parents _____
_____ fight with bf/gf
_____ losing
_____ careless drivers
_____ slow drivers
 It is the collection of
physiological changes
STRESS
that occur when you
RESPONSE face a perceived
threat.
 It is known when you
face situations where
STRESSORS you feel the demands
outweigh your
resources to
successfully cope.
 When your stress response is triggered, a
series of changes occur within your body.
They include:

 Redirection of blood away from extremities and

instead to major organs.
 The release of cortisol and other hormones,
which bring other short- and long-term changes.
 The stress response is intended to give you a
burst of energy so you’re able to fight off
attackers or run away from them effectively.
 Portfolio Output No. 9: My Stress Signals
Write about your stress signals. Answer the following
questions:
1. How do you know that you are stressed?
2. What stress signals do you have that your partner
does not have?
3. How much stress do you think you are currently
under?
4. How are your stress signals different for different
types of stressors?
5. What are some ways that you usually remove or
reduce the stress that cause you physical, emotional
or behavioral difficulties?
KEEP STRESS
UNDER
CONTROL
 Stress can be
successfully
managed. Here are
some suggestions
that may help.
 UNDERSTAND THE CAUSES OF
STRESS

ANALYZE YOUR STRESS FACTORS AND

WRITE THEM DOWN

DEAL WITH THE STRESSORS

LEARN TO WORK UNDER PRESSURE

OR UNUSUAL CONDITIONS
 Some tips to relax when under pressure:

 Stop for a moment (especially when you feel

your muscles tightening up) and take a few
deep breaths.
 Do a relaxing exercise. Swing your hands at
your sides and stretch.
 Take a “power nap.” Lie down and totally
relax for a few minutes.
 Find time to do the things you enjoy.
 Leave your study area for a while to take a
brisk walk.
 Some tips to relax when under pressure:
(cont.)

 Find a quiet place to read a magazine or novel

during break or at lunch.
 If possible, look at some peaceful images
such as forests, beaches, etc. These images
can initiate a relaxation response.
 Look up.
 Keep something humorous on hand, such as
a book of jokes.
Portfolio Output No. 10: Project-To-
Do
With your group mates, plan
your Grade 12 personal development
socialization day following the
Project-To-Do Template. Write this
plan down. Then write a reflection on
how your experience of planning,
changed with the use of the planning
tool.
Questions:

 What did you notice about your group’s

work?
 Was there a lot of stress in planning?
 How did your group reduce their stress
level?
 How can you apply this planning
method to other real-life projects?