1. The World of Teens: Emotions, Feelings & Moods
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How Emotions Affect Your Health
emotional pain and helps us attain peace,
Our perception and response to our calm, and joy.
environment and community influences
our mindset, behaviour, and perception
about other people and the world we live
in. We can be pessimistic, allowing gloom Although we cannot will ourselves to feel
and negativity to haunt our every waking positive all the time, a number of
hour; or we can choose to be optimistic techniques can be learned to help us
and see our stress and anxiety as normal reduce the impact of stress and anxiety.
human reaction to life's challenges. But Using relaxation techniques based on
there is more to human response to Western, Eastern, and other traditional
stress and anxiety than just having a “bad forms of meditation can help us reclaim a
day.” Our disposition not only affects our positive outlook. These techniques not
behaviour but the state of our health, as only alleviate but also prevent
well. psychological problems such as
depression, anxiety attacks, aggression,
Extensive research has shown that and other stress-related illnesses like
people who are suffering from depression chronic pain, tension headaches, and
and anxiety are at greater risk of having hypertension. The following are some of
heart disease and other illnesses. Further the useful methods that promote peace
studies also proved that people who are and relaxation:
under extreme prolonged stress are more
susceptible to infections like the flu and Visual Imagery – It involves visualizing
the viral cold. oneself in the midst of a soothing and
peaceful scene - a forest, a beach, a
In recent years, researches have stream, a lake, or being in the mountains.
reinforced the theory that the human mind The important thing is that you visualize a
plays a major role in influencing the way scene that is beautiful and calm. Aside
that our body works. Attitudes and from picturing nature scenes in your
emotions directly impact health and well- head, you could also try recalling a
being. Being too negative in terms of special, happy moment in your life. The
one's thoughts or emotions somehow practice of visualization slows down the
weakens an individual's immune system, heart rate and breathing patterns.
which also confirms the mind-and-body
link of health and well-being. The same Meditation – This requires concentration
study showed that people who are more or focusing one's thoughts. It is often
optimistic have a 50% lower risk of referred to as the act of “emptying one's
untimely death than those who are thoughts of all negative thoughts and
pessimistic. Aside from a lower risk of emotions.” Meditation helps cultivate
premature death, having a positive calmness and promotes the development
attitude increases a person's energy and of new and fresh insights into a problem
ability to handle life's difficulties. Having a and about life itself.
positive attitude helps us deal with
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2. Exercise – A good relaxation therapy that suffer from anxiety and panic disorders.
is mixed with physical exercise is called The technique entails the application of
isometric squeeze technique. This alternate tension and relaxation on the
technique is used as part of a systematic body's 16 different muscle groups.
desensitization therapy for people who
There are other practical steps towards building a more positive life. These steps include
the following:
1. Reduce Stress.
2. Get Plenty of Rest.
3. Get Organized.
4. Exercise.
5. Eat Well.
By cultivating a more positive attitude and face life's many obstacles and occasional
frame of mind, we can overcome life's heartaches. Through the application of
many challenges. Having a calm stress management techniques and a
disposition entails the development of a commitment to overcome one's personal
coping mechanism that enables us to problems, life can be more meaningful,
worthwhile, and of course, happy as
happy can be.
1. Finish the sentences below according to the text.
1. Optimistic people handle stress ...
2. Your emotions affect …
3. Negative thoughts and emotions can harm your …
4. Positive people live …
5. Relaxation techniques can…
2. Which of the relaxation techniques described in the text do you prefer? Why?
3. Name the health problems that derive from negative thinking and emotions.
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