Five Ways to Fight Depression

 

Ex. 1 Some sentences have been removed from the following text. Find the points where they fit.

 

If you feel depressed, it’s best to do something about it ‒ depression doesn’t just go away on its own. In addition to getting help from a doctor or therapist, here are 5 things you can do to feel better.

‒Exercise. Take a 15- to 30-minute brisk walk every day ‒ or dance, Jog, or bike if you prefer. People who are depressed may not feel much like being active. 1 ___. Once you get in the exercise habit, it won't take long to notice a difference in your mood. In addition to getting aerobic exercise, some yoga poses can help relieve feelings of depression. 2 ___. Two other aspects of yoga ‒ breathing exercises and meditation ‒ can also help people with depression reel better.

‒ Nurture yourself with good nutrition. Depression can affect appetite. One person may not feel like eating at all, but another might overeat. 3 ___. Proper nutrition can influence a person’s mood and energy. So eat plenty of fruits and vegetables and get regular meals (even if you don’t feel hungry, try to eat something light, like a piece of fruit, to keep you going).

‒ Identify troubles, but don't dwell on them. Try to identify any situations that have contributed to your depression, when you know what’s got you feeling blue and why, talk about it with a caring friend. 4 ___. If there’s no one to tell, pouring your heart out to a journal works just as well. Once you air out these thoughts and feelings, turn your attention to something positive. 5 ___. Feeling connected to friends and family can help relieve depression. (It may also help them feel there’s something they can do instead of just watching you hurt.)

‒ Express yourself. With depression, a person’s creativity and sense of fun may seem blacked. 6 ___. Take time to play with a friend or a pet, or do something fun for yourself. Find something to laugh about ‒ a funny movie, perhaps. Laughter helps lighten your mood.

‒ Look on the bright side. Depression affects a person’s thoughts, making everything seem dismal, negative, and hopeless. If depression has you noticing only the negative, make an effort to notice the good things in life. 7 ___. Consider your strengths, gifts, or blessings. Most of all, don’t forget to be patient with yourself. Depression takes time to heal.

 

A. Talking is a way to release the feelings and to receive some understanding.

B. Try downward-facing dog or legs-up-the-wall pose (you can find these poses on websites).

C. If depression has affected your eating, you’ll need to be extra mindful of getting the right nourishment.

D. Try to notice one thing, then try to think of one more

E. Take action to solve problems. Ask for help if you need it.

G. By exercising your imagination (painting, drawing, doodling, sewing, writing, composing music, etc.) You not only get those creative juices flowing, you also loosen up some positive emotions.

F. But make yourself do it anyway (ask a friend to exercise with you if you need to be motivated).

 

Ex. 2 Find the words in the text that the following definitions refer to.

 

miserable, gloomy; suitable, appropriate; influence; limited; food; state of your feelings; help, support; think at length about smth; disappear; quick, energetic; sad, depressed; lessen or remove; make meaningless drawings; set free, liberate

 

Ex. 3 Are the following statements True or False. Support your answer with quotes from the text.

1. Depression is an incurable illness.

2. You can overcome depression if you exercise with a friend.

3. Meditation can be a way of fighting depression.

4. People suffering from depression are never overweight.

5. You should let go of your problems without identifying them.

6. Depression can cause problems in the family, too.

7. There is no need for doing any creative activities if you are depressed.

8. In a depressed person’s mind everything looks depressing.

 

Ex. 4 Role play: Follow the instructions and act out the following situation with A partner.

 

Student A: You have just read an article about how to fight depression. Your friend has been under the weather lately and you are worried that he/she might suffer from depression. Enquire about how he/she feels and give him/her advice on how to deal with the situation.

Student B: You have split up with your girl/boyfriend and since than you have been feeling depressed. You can’t eat, or sleep, you don’t go anywhere, and you are bored all the time. You think this is the end of the world. Your friend is worried about you and is trying to give you advice.

 

Ex. 5You work for a teen magazine and you got a letter from a boy who is asking for your advice. He’s lost ten kilos in two weeks, given up his favourite sports activities, has very bad marks at school. His parents are always away and they don’t care about him. Write an advice letter to him.

 

Unit 2

Laughter Yoga

 

Ex. 1 Read the text. Four sentences have been removed from the following article about Laughter Yoga. Reconstruct it by finding where they fit. There is an extra sentence that you do not need to use.

 

A. As a result you do not need to be happy, have a sense of humour, or even have a reason in order to laugh.

B. Started with just five people in 1995, today it is a global phenomenon with over 6000 clubs in 60 countries.

C. It combines laughter exercises with yoga breathing which brings more oxygen to the body and brain making one feel more energetic and healthy.

D. This is often reflected in increased sales, productivity and a more harmonious workplace.

E. Scientific research shows that laughter can help resolve many major workplace issues.

 

Laughter Yoga is a unique concept developed by Indian physician, Dr. Madan Kataria. It is fast sweeping the world and is truly a life changing experience. 1 ___. The concept is based on a scientific fact that the body cannot differentiate between fake and real laughter. One gets the same physiological and psychological benefits. Safe, easy and scientifically proven, Laughter Yoga is a lot of fun. 2 ___. 3 ___. It reduces stress resulting in improved physical and mental health and quality of work, better communication, team building skills and interpersonal relationships. Results of Laughter Yoga programs introduced by many companies around the world indicate that employees become more committed and efficient and learn more easily. 4 ___.

 

Ex. 2 Say if sentences are true, false or not mentioned? Read the complete article again and decide whether the following statements are True, False or Not Mentioned. Support your answers with quotes from the text.

 

1. If someone tries laughter yoga, their life will definitely change.

2. You must laugh and do yoga poses at the same time if you want to do laughter yoga.

3. Laughter yoga exercises involve a lot of clapping and shouting.

4. Laughter yoga is good for your body and mind as well.

5. Laughter yoga is practiced all over the world.

6. Forced laughter is not as good as spontaneous laughter.

7. This technique has not been practiced in business companies.

8. Scientists have been examining the effects of laughter for a long time.

9. Laughing too much may have side effects.

10. If workers do laughter yoga before they start work, they will feel better and the production will increase.

 

Ex. 3 Discuss the meaning of the following phrases with a partner or in a small group, and use them in the given sentences.

 

‒ laugh like a drain

‒ have the last laugh

‒ laugh your head off

‒ not know whether to laugh or cry

‒ laugh smth/smb out of court

‒ be a laugh a minute

‒ a belly laugh

‒ laugh in smb’s face

‒ Don’t make me laugh.

1. “You never know, Pete might help out.” “Pete? Help out? ______!”

2. It’s not often you hear the kind of jokes that give you ______.

4. They fired her last year but she ______ because she was taken on by their main rivals at twice the salary.

5. He ______ when he read the letter.

6. When they announced that my flight was delayed for ten hours, I didn’t know ______.

7. At the meeting, her proposal was ______.

8. “A two-hour meeting with Nigel Owen? I bet that was fun.” “Oh, it ______. ”

9. He asked them to put out their cigarettes but they just ______.

 

Unit 3

Success

Ex. 1 Study vocabulary and match definitions to these words.

 

l. Distraction, 2. Pursue, 3. Vivid, 4. Highly-driven, 5. Loser, 6. Shattered, 7. Comfort Zone, 8. Investment, 9. Reckless, 10. Take a leap, 11. Attempt, 12. Focus

A. to try to achieve something over a long period of time

B. to completely destroy someone‘s hopes, beliefs or confidence

C. when you spend a large amount of time, energy, emotion on something

D. not caring or worrying about the bad or dangerous results

E. trying to do something, especially something difficult

F. someone who is never successful in life, work, or relationships

G. something that stops you from paying attention to what you are doing

H. to give special attention to one particular person or thing

I. to have a lot of motivation

J. very clear, seeming real

K. go for something, take a chance

L. the range of activities or situations that you feel happy and confident in

 

7 Ways to be Successful

Many people want to be successful in life, but it’s easier said than done. There are so many distractions in life that it can be challenging to our goals. By keeping the following advice in mind, however, you can increase your chances of becoming successful in whatever you choose to pursue.

1. Imagine yourself being successful. Einstein said that the ______ is more important than ______. The more vividly and accurately you imagine your success, the easier it will be to be successful.

2. Surround yourself with other people who are successful. When you’re surrounded with people who are highly-driven, it’s ______.

3. Stay away from distractions. There are so many distractions in this world that you really don’t need. Whenever you are doing something which is ______ ______ or productive, imagine yourself as a loser with shattered dreams ______ and yourself ______.

4. Set a time for when you want to achieve your goal. If you don’t know when you will achieve your dream then you will never know when you will achieve it.

5. Take risks. Step out of your comfort zone. Successful people think ______ and ______ big. It can be a scary thing to do, but if you don’t, then will you ever be successful? Successful people make big investments (in their careers, in their businesses, in their education) and all investments involve risk. But don’t be reckless. Study your risks, make sure the ______ are in your ______, then take a leap.

6. Be persistent. Don’t ______ up. If your first attempt didn’t work, don’t ______. Always keep in mind the following sentence: “If you don’t give up, you cannot ______.”

7. Remove fear and doubt from your way of thinking, and focus on keeping ______ in every situation. You will be more effective if you keep a positive mind and stay focused on your goal. Remember, you can be your own best _______ or your own worst ______.

 

Ex. 2 Answer the questions with your partner.

 

1. What is this article about?

2. Why is it difficult to be successful? Describe a time when you had a difficult time being successful.

3. Can you describe the 7 ways to be successful? Why is each a good idea?

4. Which do you think is the most important way? Which is he least important? Why?

5. What are some other things you can do to be successful? Try to think of 3 more ideas together:

 

Ex. 3 What would make you feel the most successful? Rank these successes in order from 1(the best) — 8 (not so amazing). Use each number once!

 

Getting a job, looking attractive, having children, accomplishing a goal, getting a promotion, receiving an award, getting married, winning a race

 

Ex. 4 Talk about your ideas with your partner.

 

Ask: “Which would make you feel the most successful?”, “Which would make you feel the least successful?”, “What would make you feel the next most/least successful?”.

Talk more: What are some things not listed that make you feel successful?

 

Ex. 5 Free Discussion. Discuss these questions with your partner.

 

1. What is your biggest success in life? What small successes do you have every day?

2. Would you sacrifice happiness, love, or family for the opportunity to be successful? Why/Why not?

3. Who do you think are the three (3) most successful people in history? Why do you consider them the most successful?

4. What would you do with 5 Million dollars?

 

Ex. 6 The Secrets of Success. Read each statement and discuss your feelings with your group. Explain your opinion.

 

1. Money is the best measure of success.

2. Happiness is the best measure of success. Do whatever makes you feel good.

3. Finding a good partner is the best measure of success. Having a beautiful, interesting, and fashionable boyfriend or girlfriend means we must be successful.

4. Success is winning at whatever you decide to do.

5. Success is conquering oneself and having control of all emotions and desires.

6. Success is getting the respect of other people.

 

Unit 4

How to Be Yourself

 

Ex. 1 Read and translate the text.

 

It’s a good idea to be yourself, not only because everybody else is taken, but because trying to be anything else doesn't usually get you very far. But how do you do it?

First, you have to understand what you have unlearned about yourself. This process can be disheartening, as you remember past decisions where you had the chance to be yourself but instead chose to be something different.

Since trying to be anyone other than yourself is usually ineffective, why not begin by deciding to do only what is true to your own inner compass? If you did it for just one day, what would that day look like?

There are a few schools of thought that say you are incapable of making good decisions on your own; that you are inherently evil and must continuously struggle against your true nature. You are destined to lose without some kind of intervention.

But what if your true nature were good? Sure, you’ve screwed up with the best of them, hut that doesn’t mean you are destined to make bad decisions. Aren’t you capable of being true to what you believe in? Aren't you capable of being a good self?

We all know at least one bitter, negative person. My theory is that most bitter people are not being true to themselves. My guess is that somewhere along the way, they took a wrong turn they’ve always regretted, and they take out there is appointment on others. You know now there's always ONE GUY who tells you you’re stupid for not knowing how to do something? To he yourself, you have to he able to ignore him.

The last thing you want is to be bitter, but the second-last thing you want is regret. To avoid regret, you have to make active decisions I think moving forward is better than remaining stationary. And I also think you have to show people you care about them ‒ merely thinking nice things doesn’t help anyone.

Being yourself is risky. Something could go wrong, and then whose fault would it be? (This is another reason why it can be easier to let other people make your decisions ‒ then you can blame them when it doesn’t work out).

But in the long-run, you know you’re capable of being a good self. You know you’re capable of taking the risk. Even if some people don’t understand, you can find a way to pursue the life and work you’ve always wanted. And you can be yourself, whoever you are, today.

 

Ex. 2 Identify, in the text, four aspects (positive or negative) of “being yourself”.

 

Ex. 3 What do the words in italic refer to in the text?

 

a) it b) you c) my o) themselves e) him

 

Ex. 4. Find evidence in the text. (15%)

 

a) Most of the times imitating the others doesn’t have good results for us.

b) Analysing what we did in the past can be painful.

c) Some Psychologists say that we can’t succeed without someone’s help.

d) Some people are resentful because they made wrong decisions in the past.

e) We should ignore those that insult us.

f) Being yourself has its own risks.

 

Ex. 5 Find the synonyms of the following words in the text. (5%)

a) disappointing, b) inefficacious, c) bad, d) disillusionment, e) accuse

 

Ex. 6 Complete the sentences with derivative words. Write only the letters and the new word

 

a) Susan’s ______ is very strong. (person)

b) It was a ______ to me to see how badly he behaved. (disappoint)

c) He apologized for his ______. (sensitive)

d) John is a ______ driver. He has already had several accidents. (care)

e) This kind of behavior is not socially ______ in some countries. (accept)

f) To have some information about body language can be very ______ when you travel to other countries. (use)

g) I don’t understand these instructions. They are very ______. (confuse)

h) You shouldn’t be ______ to older people. (respect)

i) She is a very ______ person. (interest)

j) He is ______ for the security of this shop. (responsibility)

 

Ex. 7 Your new schoolmate is very introverted and doesn’t talk to anyone. You want to help, but don’t know how. Write a letter to a magazine asking for some advice.

Unit 5

Phobias

Ex. 1 Read and translate the text.

 

Everyone is afraid of something. Some of us are afraid of dogs, snakes, darkness and even babies. This kind of fear is called Phobia. A phobia is a very strong irrational fear or hatred of something. You can see lot of people having a kind of phobia. Maybe you have one.

Some phobias are very interesting, some or them are; Ailurophobia ‒ fear of cats, Anglophobia ‒ fear of England, Aurophobia ‒ fear of gold, Bibliophobia ‒ fear of books, Chaetophobia ‒ fear of hair, Chionopliobia ‒ fear or snow, Ecophobia ‒ fear of home, Logophobia ‒ fear of words, Nomatophobia ‒ fear of names. The names of these phobias are also interesting, aren’t they?

Some phobias can change our lifestyles. For example, if you have Dondrophobia (fera of trees), you can not walk around the forest or even in the garden. Or, if you have Heliophobla (fear of the sun), how can you go outside in the daylight! Or, if you are afraid of speaking (Lalophobia), can you make a presentation in the class! So, some phobias can affect some people in an unlpeasant way.

Once l have met a man, Adam. He has Cynophobia (fear of dogs). I asked some questions about the reason of his phobia. He told his story. He said. “When he is a student, he goes home on foot. There aren’t school buses then. So, one day he is walking his home. Tom and Mary are with him. On their way, they see a dangerous big dog. It begins to bark at them. They are afraid of the dog. So, they begin in run, the dog follows them. He falls over and cuts my knee. And that big dog comes and bites his leg. Since then he is afraid of anything barking. And he is not a friend with Tom and Mary anymore.”

I wonder if there is a phobia about English language. Perhaps, that’s grammarphobia.

 

Ex. 2 Match the words with the definitions.

 

… reason a) not based on clear thought or reason

… bark b) an event an which you describe or explain a new product or idea

… presentation c) you make someone feel strong emotions

… gold d) a valuable soft yellow metal that is used to make coins, jewellery etc.

… affect e) a large area of land which is covered with trees

… irrational f) why someone decides to do something, or the cause or explanation for something that happens

… forest g) when a dog barks, it makes a short loud sound or series of sounds

 

Ex. 3 Answer these questions.

 

l. What does phobia mean?

2. What is Ecophobia?

3. What can’t you do if you have Anglophobia?

4. What is the name of Adam/s phobia?

5. How many people are there in the story?

6. What is grammarphobia?

 

Unit 6

Body Language

Ex.1 Read and translate the text.

 

Body language is both the most basic, fundamental form of expression used by human beings to communicate with one another, and at the same time a part of a highly sophisticated and culturally specific system of coded signals, in which bodily and facial movement play an important part as verbal communication. For example a baby grimacing in distaste at an unfamiliar or unpleasant sensation; the careful timing and co-ordination of bows between two Japanese of equal social class; and the series of insulting hand gestures between drivers in Brazil.

Body language forms are an indispensable element in social interaction. Facial expression and bodily movements can amplify, modify, confirm, or subvert verbal expressions, having meanings which elude or surpass verbal language.

Body language reflects differences of gender as well as of class and nationality. Rules for the physical behaviour of women are often different from those of men. Women are usually encouraged to look modestly downward, to walk with small steps, be less expressive in facial language than men and to eat smaller portions of food.

Modern studies of body language are based on the belief that gesture is not a universal or natural language, but the product of social and cultural contexts. Even the most elementary aspects of physical behaviour, such as the ways in which people eat, sleep, walk, or sit, seem to be culturally determined, and vary greatly from society to society. This includes both the signals used by people to communicate meaning non-verbaly, and also involuntary emotive or physical reactions, such as blushing or crying.

Behaviours which have been represented as spontaneous or instinctive action expressing the emotions are revealed to be neither spontaneous nor transparent. They are formalized, stylized, and ordered to a specific code of meaning, which may become inappropriate or impolite in other places or cultures. Hugging and kissing another person, in a public place, may cause discomfort or even offence to a person unfamiliar with this custom and passing by with only a distant nod, may fail to have any effect on a person who is not used to expecting this gesture of affection in public.

Cross-cultural studies demonstrating the variability of bodily gesture and facial expression are completed by the experience of travellers to other countries, or even those who see films or listen to music from other parts of the world.

The globalization of culture, especially in urban centres which everywhere tend increasingly to be cosmopolitan in their products and attitudes, has diminished certain of these differences. Cultural homogenization occurs relativer rapidly in certain aspects such as fashions in dress, eating of ‘luxury’ food items, or the importation of foreign words or decorative objects. However, it tends to take place much more slowly on bodily expression and facial gesture, which people take more time to accept and change.

 

Ex. 2 Match the bold words with their meaning.

 

1. grimacing a) international commerce in goods and services

2. indispensable b) products

3. blushing c) facial expression showing that you’re angry and that something is hurting you

4. globalization d) essential

5. items e) going red

 

Ex. 3 Are these sentences TRUE or FALSE? Quote from the text to justify your choice.

 

1. Gestures are a very strong means of communication.

2. Body language is the same for everyone, everywhere.

3. Kissing a person in the street is an affectionate behavior all around the world.

4. Studying other cultures or travelling abroad helps us be aware of the diversity of body talk.

5. Body language is not easily altered.

 

Ex. 4 Answer the questions.

 

1. Why is body language so important?

2. In what ways are women supposed to be different from men?

3. According to modern studies how can you define body language?

 

Unit 7