Stress is what you feel when you react to pressure. The pressure can come from events in your life, from other people, or even from just thoughts or ideas about yourself. Different people get stressed by different things. For example, you might get very stressed about an assignment, but your friend might think it’s fun. Your friend may think doing a speech is terrifying, but you think it's exciting.

A little stress or anxiety is good for you. But it's important not to let it take over your life. It may be too much if you feel frightened, find it hard to concentrate, have difficulty sleeping and/or eating, or feel irritable.

How can you deal with stress?

• Deep breathing. Just slow down and take some deep breaths. Three seconds in, three seconds out through the nose. Wait three seconds then repeat. Try breathing using your tummy and not your chest - it will encourage deeper breaths. Keep at it for five minutes.
• Exercise. The easiest de-stressing remedy out there. Go get sweaty.
• Stay away from caffeine, alcohol and cigarettes. Drugs mess with your mind, so steer clear.
• Plant good thoughts. Try to stop obsessing about the bad stuff. Try and chuck out negative thoughts as they come up and purposefully replace them with good ones.
• Tackle it. Make a list of all the things you're stressing over. Try to do them one by one.

If you feel you are not coping and the stress is taking over, talk to someone who can help. A problem shared is often a problem solved.

Need to talk to someone now? Call the Tithandizane Helpline on 116.