As the pace of life continues to increase, we are fast losing the art of relaxation.Once you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go from morning till night,it is hard to slow down. But relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body.
Stress is a natural part of everyday life and there is no way to avoid it. In fact, it is not the bad thing as it is often supposed to be. A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life. It is only when the stress gets out of control can it lead to poor performance and ill health.
The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such characters are obviously prime material for managerial responsibilities. Others lose heart at the first signs of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we react both chemically and physically. In fact, we make a choice between "flight or fight"and in more primitive days the choices made the difference between life or death.The crises we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme, but however little the stress, it involves the same response. It is when such a reaction lasts long, through continued exposure to stress, that health becomes endangered. Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart diseases have established links with stress. Since we cannot remove stress from our lives (it would be unwise to do so even if we could), we need to find ways to deal with it.（英语作文）
翻译：
随着生活节奏的持续加快，我们正在迅速地丧失放松的本领。你一旦养成了快节奏的生活习惯，从早到晚忙个不停，要想放慢节奏就不是件容易的事儿。可是松弛对一个人的身心健康至关重要。
压力是日常生活的一个自然组成部分，无法逃避。事实上，压力并不像人们通常想象的那样是件坏事。一定的压力对于激发动力、赋予人生以目标是至关重要的。只有在压力过大时才会导致表现失常，健康恶化。
一个人承受压力的大小在很大程度上要看个体之间的差异。有些人不怕压力，这种人是承担管理性责任的上好人选。而另一些人一碰到非同寻常的问题就泄了气。我们面临任何形式的压力时，都会产生化学的和物理的反应。事实上，我们会做出“逃避还是迎战”的选择，在以前这就是生与死的选择。我们今天遇到的危机不大可能如此极端，但是无论压力多么微不足道，我们对其反应是一样的。只有当连续不断的压力，使我们长时间持续对它做出反应时，我们的健康才会受到危害。高血压、心脏病等严重疾病与压力有关已经无可辩驳。既然我们无法在生活中摆脱压力(即使可能，这样做也是不明智的)，我们就需要找出对付压力的办法来。
