Writing Research

I. Introduction:
It is undeniable that the modern life is full of hassles, deadlines, frustrations, and demands which partly cause stress. In medical terms stress is described as “a physical stimulus that can reduce mental tension or physiological reactions that may lead to illness”. For many people, stress is so common and it has become a way of life. In fact, stress is not always bad because in a small dose, it can help people perform under pressure and motivate them to do their best. In contrast, too much stress is really harmful and can cause damage to people’s health, people’s mood as well as people’s quality of life. According to National Institutes of Mental Health, approximately 2.4 million American adults have panic disorder and more than 19 million American adults have an anxiety disorder. It can be seen easily that in order to lead a modern, healthy life, people should prepare for themselves many life skills including coping with stress skill. So what and how people should do to cope with stress?

II. Cause of stress
Many people consider stress to be something that happens to them, an event such as an injury or a promotion. Others think that stress is what happens to their minds and behaviors to an event (e.g. heart pounding, anxiety or phobias). Whatever it is, stress causes some effects on our lives, work and health. Therefore, what we should consider deeply is know the causes of stress, which helps find some appropriate ways to eradicate it. After searching some materials on the Internet, our group has a tendency to explore two main leading causes of stress: external and internal causes.

Some external causes of stress heavily influence on people’s lives. The first factor that contributes to getting people stressed is finance. In an online poll conducted in 2005 by Life Care, Inc., 23 percent of respondents named finances as major source of stress in their lives, which includes loss of income, mounting credit card debt or not coming term with daily expense. Some people find it depressed when facing a pile of bill at the end of every month; students cannot concentrate on their study when thinking about the payment for room and other expenditure. Closely tied to finance, job problem is also the main cause of stress. A study done by Northwestern National Life reports that one-fourth of employees views their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives. Excessively high workloads with unrealistic deadlines make people feel rushed, under high pressure and overwhelmed. A recent American survey, published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, noted that for those working 12 hours a day, there was a 37% increase in risk of illness and injury in comparison to those who work fewer hours. In addition, the threatening environment in workplace, the struggle to climb a career ladders overwhelmed by the high demands totally get employees tired and frequently worried. Other examples of external stressors include a poor physical working environment, e.g. excessive heat, cold or noise, inadequate lighting, uncomfortable seating, malfunctioning equipment, etc. lead to distraction and bad- attitudes in work.

Another external cause that leads to stress is study problem. The survey carried by the Associated Press and a college TV station in the United States on college student stress found that four out of ten college students report they feel stressed often. One out of five say they feel stressed most of the time. One out of four students experienced daily stress and one in ten had thoughts of suicide. The major reason for that attitude is the pressure (from family or the student’s internal motivation) to have well performance in class, i.e. the desire to do the best and get perfect grades. Amount of schoolwork is also a factor that makes college students overwhelmed quickly. School tasks get students intensively concentrated and usually worried, especially when the time of deadlines is coming. That is the reason why they feel depressed and easily lose their control. In 2005, the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) surveyed 17,000 college students. Twenty-five percent of the students reported they have "felt so depressed it was difficult to function" three to eight times in the past 12 months. Twenty one percent of the students reported that they "seriously considered suicide." Finally yet importantly, the poor relationship of family members increases the degree of stress. Spouse who has a quarrel, parent who naps, teenagers who do not obey their parents’ order etc put family members in high level of stress because they have a sense of isolation. Financial difficulties, problems in work and family conflicts are common issues that most people may suffer, so the underlying principle is the balance we build to control our emotions and prevent them growing into stress.

WORKS CITED
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