Dear Ms. Chen,
I am writing before I lose my nerve. For the past month I have not slept well, and in class my mind goes blank the moment you call my name. I know my last two papers were late, and I am sorry.
My parents believe the pressure comes only from me. Perhaps they are right, but I cannot switch it off alone. The school nurse suggested that I speak to you first.
Could I come to your office on Friday after four? I do not want extra time for the tests. I would just like to plan the rest of the term with someone who has seen this before.
Thank you,
Chang Wei-ting
陳老師您好：
我趁還有勇氣的時候寫這封信。過去一個月我睡得很不好，上課時只要您一叫到我的名字，我腦中就一片空白。我知道前兩份報告遲交了，很抱歉。
我的父母認為壓力全是我自己給的。或許他們說得沒錯，但我沒辦法一個人把它關掉。學校護理師建議我先來找您談談。
我可以星期五四點後到您的辦公室嗎？我不是要爭取考試加時。我只是希望能和看過這種情況的人，一起把這學期剩下的日子規劃好。
謝謝您
張威廷
Breathe — a free four-week evening course
Tuesdays, 19:00 to 20:30, Community Center, Room B. The first week surprises most people: they simply sleep better. Bring nothing but a notebook. Classes are limited to twenty adults; register online before 5 May. Anyone who misses two evenings cannot receive the certificate.
呼吸 —— 免費四週晚間課程
每週二 19:00 至 20:30，社區中心 B 室。第一週就讓多數人意外：他們單純就是睡得更好了。除了筆記本什麼都不用帶。名額限二十位成人；請於五月五日前線上報名。缺席兩個晚上者無法取得結業證書。
Sleep is the first thing a busy mind gives up and the last thing it can afford to lose. In one study, healthy adults who slept five hours a night for a week became slower at simple tasks and much quicker to anger.
The link works in both directions. Worry keeps people awake, and a short night then makes every problem look bigger the next morning. Researchers call this a loop rather than a chain.
Breaking the loop rarely requires medicine. Fixed wake-up times, darker rooms and no screens after ten helped most volunteers within two weeks. A short message of sympathy from a friend, the study noted, helped almost as much.
睡眠是忙碌的頭腦最先犧牲的東西，卻也是最不能失去的東西。在一項研究中，連續一週每晚只睡五小時的健康成人，做簡單工作變慢，也更容易發脾氣。
這個關聯是雙向的。煩惱使人睡不著，而睡得太短又讓隔天早上每個問題看起來更大。研究人員稱之為一個迴圈，而不是一條鏈子。
要打破這個迴圈，很少需要藥物。固定的起床時間、更暗的房間，以及十點後不看螢幕，讓多數受試者在兩週內獲得改善。研究也指出，朋友一則簡短的關懷訊息，效果幾乎不相上下。
A company asked 500 employees to name the main cause of stress at work. Each person chose one answer.
| Main cause | Office staff | Factory staff |
|---|---|---|
| Too little time | 41% | 28% |
| Unclear instructions | 26% | 19% |
| Noise | 7% | 33% |
| Difficult colleagues | 26% | 20% |
The company plans to repeat the same survey next spring.
某公司請 500 名員工說出工作壓力的主要來源。每人只選一個答案。
| 主要原因 | 辦公室員工 | 工廠員工 |
|---|---|---|
| 時間太少 | 41% | 28% |
| 指令不清 | 26% | 19% |
| 噪音 | 7% | 33% |
| 難相處的同事 | 26% | 20% |
公司計畫明年春天再做一次同樣的調查。