Grade 12
LIFE
ORIENTATION
1
, Chapter 1: Development of Self in Society
Stress
✴ Stress is a reaction caused by ongoing, increasing or new pressures or demands. Your body’s
inability to cope with the demands placed upon it.
• Pressures > coping skills: constant nervous and tension, overwhelmed
• Way we respond to stressors can increase/decrease our stress
• Pressures that lead to stress = stressors
‣ Physical (eg: poor nutrition, HIV and AIDS)
- Stress that affects body. Can include unhealthy lifestyle choices
- Physical and emotional pain, loss trust, fear, unable focus, scarring, absent from
school
‣ Emotional (eg: victim of crime)
- Feelings, thoughts, reactions to crisis and change, personality and self-image
- Feelings stressors: anger, disappointment…
- Life crisis stressors: unplanned pregnancy
- Change and personality can be a stressor (know your personality type to manage)
- = Sorrow, mourning, loneliness, depression, worry, anxiety, unhealthy lifestyle
choices
‣ Social (eg: divorce in family) —> interaction with people
- Relationships with others
- = worry, loss motivation, lack sleep, harm self
‣ Environmental (eg: natural disasters, pollution, floods)
- Where you live and physical facts that affect you
- = feel tense, headaches, irritable, unable focus
• Personality Types
‣ A: competitive, perfection, busy, top, goal, push selves, self-motivated
‣ B: easy-going, optimistic, procrastinate, not competitive, joke around
‣ C: shy, alone, keep others happy, passive aggressive, like order and facts, careful and
logical
‣ D: pessimistic, feelings to self, like routine, little energy, depressed, easily irritated, often
tired
• Signs and Symptoms stress:
‣ Signs: physical and can be seen or measured (diarrhoea, rapid heartbeat, bleeding
ulcers, sweating excessively)
‣ Symptoms: problems that you notice or feel (headaches, stomach aches, feeling tense,
unable sleep, constant thirst)
• Levels of stress
‣ Low level: able to cope with stress
‣ Average level: still coping, but what’s stressing you needs attention before
unmanageable
‣ High level: urgently need to apply stress management or get rid of causes of stress
• Positive and negative stress:
‣ Stress can motivate as releases adrenalin into bloodstream = energy to take action
2
LIFE
ORIENTATION
1
, Chapter 1: Development of Self in Society
Stress
✴ Stress is a reaction caused by ongoing, increasing or new pressures or demands. Your body’s
inability to cope with the demands placed upon it.
• Pressures > coping skills: constant nervous and tension, overwhelmed
• Way we respond to stressors can increase/decrease our stress
• Pressures that lead to stress = stressors
‣ Physical (eg: poor nutrition, HIV and AIDS)
- Stress that affects body. Can include unhealthy lifestyle choices
- Physical and emotional pain, loss trust, fear, unable focus, scarring, absent from
school
‣ Emotional (eg: victim of crime)
- Feelings, thoughts, reactions to crisis and change, personality and self-image
- Feelings stressors: anger, disappointment…
- Life crisis stressors: unplanned pregnancy
- Change and personality can be a stressor (know your personality type to manage)
- = Sorrow, mourning, loneliness, depression, worry, anxiety, unhealthy lifestyle
choices
‣ Social (eg: divorce in family) —> interaction with people
- Relationships with others
- = worry, loss motivation, lack sleep, harm self
‣ Environmental (eg: natural disasters, pollution, floods)
- Where you live and physical facts that affect you
- = feel tense, headaches, irritable, unable focus
• Personality Types
‣ A: competitive, perfection, busy, top, goal, push selves, self-motivated
‣ B: easy-going, optimistic, procrastinate, not competitive, joke around
‣ C: shy, alone, keep others happy, passive aggressive, like order and facts, careful and
logical
‣ D: pessimistic, feelings to self, like routine, little energy, depressed, easily irritated, often
tired
• Signs and Symptoms stress:
‣ Signs: physical and can be seen or measured (diarrhoea, rapid heartbeat, bleeding
ulcers, sweating excessively)
‣ Symptoms: problems that you notice or feel (headaches, stomach aches, feeling tense,
unable sleep, constant thirst)
• Levels of stress
‣ Low level: able to cope with stress
‣ Average level: still coping, but what’s stressing you needs attention before
unmanageable
‣ High level: urgently need to apply stress management or get rid of causes of stress
• Positive and negative stress:
‣ Stress can motivate as releases adrenalin into bloodstream = energy to take action
2
