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Inside Collection (Course): Life Orientation Grade 8
Before we think about stress any further, I must explain that all stress is not bad for one. There is eustres, a positive kind of stress, which prompts people to do their best in certain situations, for example to study for exams, or to prepare for athletics or sports matches. This type of stress spurs people on to do their best within a certain time.
The harmful kind of stress is actually called distres. That develops when one is subjected to too much stress for too long. It is this kind of stress that can make one feel ill because, amongst other things, it weakens one’s immunity or resistance to disease. The reasons for distress should be examined carefully, and should then be treated before too much damage is done to people’s physical and mental well-being.
1. Is all stress bad for one? Give reasons for your answer.
2. When does one experience distres?
3. Say which factors or situations cause eustres or distres in your life. Write E or D next to each situation or factor.
4. Together with a classmate look carefully at the following situations and then decide which factors caused stress in each situation. See whether you and your friend agree. If you don’t, get more opinions from your classmates when the teacher gives you time to do that.
A. Bernita is sitting in her bedroom, and she is crying. Her mother wants to know what the matter is, but she refuses to say anything. Earlier that afternoon Bernita had been shopping with her friend and she had seen her father walking into a restaurant hand-in-hand with a strange woman.
B. Suleiman doesn’t want to eat. He is upset because he is the only one in his class who hasn’t been invited to a friend’s party.
C. While tidying Nomhla’s room, her mother discovers a test that Nomhla should have given her to sign. She had done very badly in the test. She had stayed in her room the whole of the previous evening, and had pretended to be studying, but in fact she had been reading a book.
D. Patrick stays in a tiny room on his uncle’s property. After 21:00 all the lights must be switched off and he is allowed to use the bath twice a week only. On other days of the week he has a shower. There is only cold water in the shower. He has to do his own washing. He is given some supper at 18:00. His breakfast consists of one slice of bread and some coffee. There is no lunch. His aunt works and the house stays locked until she gets home.
E. Macy stays near a railway station. Her mother works night shifts and her father arrives home after seven o’ clock in the evenings. Her elder brother also lives there. His friends visit him until very late at night.
A.
B.
C.
D.
E.
[LO 3.1, 3.2]
| Learning outcomes(LOs) |
| LO 3 |
| Personal DevelopmentThe learner will be able to use acquired life skills to achieve and extend personal potential to respond effectively to challenges in his or her world. |
| Assessment standards(ASs) |
| We know this when the learner: |
| 3.1 analyses and discusses factors which influence self-concept formation and self-motivation; |
| 3.2 reflects on appropriate behaviour in different kinds of interpersonal relationships; |
| 3.5 designs and implements a personal plan for preventing and managing stress. |
Activity 3:
Which factors cause eustres or distress in the learner?
Case studies
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Last edited by Siyavula Uploaders on Apr 2, 2009 11:56 am -0500.