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4. Why is a true friend a “stress reliever”?
A great stress factor is family problems. It is a bonus if you have a happy family life. Nobody is going to lecture you by saying, “Appreciate your mother and father and brothers and sisters.” When you are in your teens, you detest being lectured about such things and you often find your parents and other family members to be an irritation and an embarrassment. We are talking about an ordinary, normal everyday family - people who argue and differ, but who know that they care for each other and will stand together at all costs. When something happens to this ordinary family, for instance if
someone gets very ill, or the parents want to have a divorce, everyone’s stress levels go sky-high. Everyday arguments and discord also create stress, but that is of a passing nature. It’s like the weather. The skies turn grey, the clouds grow dark, there is heavy thunder, the rain falls (tears), and then the sun shines again. When something very serious goes wrong in the family, the members of the family sometimes need outside help. If there is something wrong in your family, talk to a reliable adult so that you can get perspective and help.
Teenagers who have a very hard time when their parents go through a divorce, try to take the place of the parent who has left home. Sometimes parents also make the mistake of sending messages to each other via the children. It isn’t a good thing to place the child in the middle of the parents’ problems. If that should happen to you, you can say in a friendly and sympathetic way, “I think it’s better if you speak to each other on your own.” Remember, adults also make mistakes. Understand and forgive them if they lose their cool in such a situation – but they have to solve their own problems; you can’t do it for them; not by crying or shouting; not by running away from home or by threatening to commit suicide … your job is to work through your own sorrow about the situation and not to save the marriage.
6. Make a sketch of yourself and your family. It would be nice if you used colour. The drawing doesn’t have to be true to life. You could use parts of photographs to complete the picture. Enjoy the activity and be creative.
[LO 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 8:
Notification Switch
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