MODULE 4: COPING WITH STRESS IN MIDDLE AND LATE ADOLESCENCE

PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT – GRADE 11

Content Standard: The learners demonstrate an understanding of stress and its sources; various stress responses; and
coping strategies for healthful living in middle and late adolescence.

Performance Standard: The learner shall be able to identify personal ways of coping for healthful living.

Quarter 1: Learning Competencies:

At the end of this module, the students must be able to:

1. Discuss understanding of mental health and psychological well-being to identify ways to cope with stress during
adolescence.
2. Identify causes and effect of stress in one’s life.
3. Demonstrate personal ways to cope with stress and maintain mental health.

Time Allotment: 1 Week

Lesson Outline:

A. Introduction
 The long wait is over! Mental Health is now a law in the Philippines.
Help is finally here according to Senator Risa Hontiveros, one of the authors of the said law,
as quoted by Rappler (2018). The senator is actually referring to Republic Act 11036, which is
also known as The Mental Health Law of 2018. Nowadays, mental health is considered an
important issue that needs to be discussed. It is not just an ordinary topic or matter that you can
disregard since most young people like you experience mental illness such as anxiety and
depression. Because of this mental illness, young and old people end their lives by committing
suicide. \
 In this module, you will embark on understanding mental health. In so doing, you may minimize
the occurrence of mental disorders and propose feasible ways to other individuals to have
stable mental health well-being. Let’s discover how!

B. Exploration
Activity: Let’s do some Art

Instruction: Get any drawing material (watercolor, crayons, acrylic, etc. You may draw/paint/color on a
piece of short bond paper according to your own style and perspective. Answer the processing question
in ½ crosswise.
Processing questions.
1. What did I paint?
2. Why did I paint it?

Your mind is the maker or breaker of yourself. Mental health is greatly affected
by the stress and anxiety that you experience in life. A healthy mind is a sound
mind. As a challenge to yourself, you must properly deal with stress, handle
Activity your emotions and the most form your life. In other words, you must look after
our mental health.
Learning
According to Christian Nordquist (2017), “mental health refers to our cognitive,
 behavioral, and emotional wellbeing”. Your mental health must also be taken
Zone: good care of the way you treat your physical health. Just as your body needs
exercise, so does your mind. Unexpressed emotions may increase the risk of
an unhealthy body, according to a study conducted by psychologists from
Harvard School of Public Health and the University of Rochester. The best way
to care for your mental health is to talk or express your feelings especially
when you are at your worst according to the mental health is to talk or express
your feelings especially when you are at your worst according to the Mental
Health Foundation. Art is one of the best ways to express your emotions
through the use of a creative process which enhances your physical, mental
and emotional wellbeing.

This activity encourages you to express your thoughts and feelings. It allows
you to provide feedback of your classmates’ creativity/ it also helps you to
improve your cognitive and sensory motor, self-esteem/self-awareness, and
social skill. In addition, through art therapy, you can relax for a moment and at
the same time release tension from a stressful environment.

C. Deepening
 Mental health according to Hales, as cited on Tria, Gaerlan, Limpingco (2012), is the capacity to
think rationally and logically to cope with life’s transitions, stress, traumas, in a way that allows
stability and growth. Because of this, man can now live his life to the fullest.
 Good mental health leads to:

+ positive self-image
+ Satisfying relationships with friends and others.
+ Good Decision-making.
+ Have a good deal with life’s challenges.
+ Can perform duties/responsibilities

 Symptoms of poor mental health:

+Emotionally unstable and easily upset
+Apprehensive, suspicious and insecure
+Self-critical, empowered with a feeling of guilt
+Lack of self-confidence and willpower
+Failure in setting a proper level of aspiration
+Unrealistic attitude towards life and people.

 Mental health plays a significant role in all aspects of life. It is being expressed through having a
health y relationship with others and with the environment that we live in. Resilient people
become less afraid of new things or unexpected events.

Can sustain close relationship with other people

MENTALLY
Applies values in himself/herself
HEALTHY
INDIVIDUAL

Can perform his duty/responsibilities

 Factors Affecting Mental Health

 - Self-esteem – Individuals who possess a high self-esteem make a positive outlook of their
life since most of them are satisfied with themselves and having good image and sense of
self-worth of a person.
- Feeling loved- Being love by the people especially their parents are more likely to perform in
the society since most of them have a good relationship with other people.
- Confidence – Young individuals should be encouraged to build their confidence in facing
their problems in life. Being confident within themselves are likely to have a positive character
that leads to a happy life.
- Family break-up or loss – Separation of parents or family break up might lead to the serious
problem to the young individuals since most of them could not experience or witness the idea
of love that is being shared by the family. As a result, young individuals have difficulty in
extending or interacting with other people.
- Physical Health- Individuals having diseases, injuries, traumatic experience or physical
problems might lead to poor mental health or mental illness. As a result, people who have
illness might affect their relationship with other people, their confidence about themselves,
and their dreams or goals in life. Furthermore, people may not be able to attain happiness
due to illness.
 Ways of Achieving Psychological Well-being and Mental Health.
- Having a positive regard for oneself means looking at oneself as someone who is worth
loving and worth caring for, regardless of physical flaws and defects regardless of how other
people perceive him/her to be.
- Understanding and accepting one’s personality, uniqueness, and individuality.
- Having a positive warm regard for oneself; seeing one’s strengths, challenges and success,
as well as the stumbling blocks that come along the way in one’s search for meaning and
happiness.
- Embracing meaningful universal human values that define who you are, and how these
values form your set of healthy attitudes about other people, situations and thing.
 Stress
- Stress and mental health is closely related. People who have good mental health are usually
capable of managing stress.
- Stress is being defined as a state of psychological and physiological imbalance resulting from
the disparity between situational demands and the individual’s ability and motivation to meet
those demands (Akrani 2011).
- Stress can be negative or positive. It is positive when it opens opportunities and negative
when we face social, physical, organizational and emotional problems. Events that lead to
stress are termed as stressors.
 Coping Mechanisms for Stress
We try to deal directly with the anxiety-producing situations by appraising the situation and by
doing something to avoid it or change its course.
 Stress Coping Strategies:
Problem-focused – dealing with the stressor itself. In includes reducing, modifying, or
eliminating the source of stress.
Emotion-focused – efforts to modify the unpleasant emotional consequences of stress;
Proactive coping – anticipating some stressful situations and taking active measure to avoid
or minimize its consequences.

Other healthy ways to cope with stress:

1. Take care of ourselves, it means we need to eat regularly and be healthy.
2. Do things that make us happy
3. Learn to manage our time wisely
4. Exercise on a regular basis
5. Get plenty of sleep and give a break if you feel that you are so stressed already.
6. Talk to others or seek group or social support
7. Avoid using drugs and alcohol.
 Activity: Stress Reflection

Instruction: Contemplate for a while and begin to think of your stressful experiences for the past few days
or months. Answer the following guide questions in your journal.
1. Is there something or someone that has been bothering or disturbing you for the past few days? How
does it affect you as a person?
2. Are you taking care of yourself physically and emotionally?
3. Are you achieving the goals that you have set for yourself?
4. Do you let matters that are out of control stress you out?

D. Transfer:

E. Glossary:

Mental Health – it refers to cognitive, behavioral, and emotional well-being. It is all about how people think,
feel, and behave. People sometimes use the term “mental health” to mean the absence of a mental disorder.
Self-esteem – the term is used to describe a person’s overall sense of self-worth or personal value. In other
words, how much you appreciate and like yourself. It involves a variety of beliefs about yourself, such as the
appraisal of your own appearance, beliefs, emotions, and behaviors.
Uniqueness – Person’s distinctiveness in relation to other people. Such uniqueness can reflect actual behaviors
or a person’s perceptions regarding his or her differences.

REFERENCES:

Books:

Cleofe, Myreen P. (2016). Personal development. Diwa Learning System Inc. Makati City: Philippines.
Department of Education Republic of the Philippines. (2016). Personal Development Reader. Quezon City: Philippines.
Case M, Deguma J, De los Reyes N, Manugas S, Unabia M, (2019) Personal Development. Lorimar Publishing, Inc. Cubao, Quezon City,
Philippines.

Electronic Sources:
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/15453