SENTENCE PUNCTUATION EXERCISE

Following are unpunctuated sentences.  Supply the necessary punctuation.  You may change lowercase letters to capital letters (and should do so where punctuation requires such a change); however, do not change the wording.

1.  Everyone experiences stressful situations at least occasionally therefore we all develop ways to deal with stress.

2.  Some of us find healthy techniques for handling these situations others deal with them in unhealthy ways that may even make the situation worse.

3.  Among the healthy ways to cope with stress are to find diversions that will distract us temporarily from the source of stress to develop the psychological tools that enable us to prevent stress from becoming overwhelming and to seek professional help whenever our own methods seem inadequate.

4.  Before we can deal successfully with any kind of stress we must understand what is causing it if we do not comprehend the cause of a problem a solution may remain beyond our reach.

5.  Sometimes the only answer is to escape from stressful situations temporarily for example we can engage in a hobby or some other activity that diverts our thoughts from the anxiety-producing situation.

6.  Although such activities do not solve the problem they may at least put us in a better frame of mind consequently we will be better prepared to deal with it later.

7.  Indeed since we often cause our own stress by worrying about tomorrow's anticipated problems all we need to do sometimes is to convince ourselves that they are not today's problems and to remain in the present some forms of procrastination can have positive outcomes.

8.  Because stress is often caused more by our own reactions to an event than by the event itself we may reduce tension by modifying our reactions and our state of mind one way to do this is meditation.

9.  When we meditate we clear a channel for analysis and we become more capable of viewing a stressful situation in perspective furthermore as the mind focuses on soothing thoughts the body tends to become more relaxed.

10.  Sometimes however we may be incapable of dealing with stress on our own resources and we will need professional help.

11.  A counselor or even a close friend may sometimes provide the help we need all this person may have to do is listen to us because just venting our fears or anxieties may loosen the grip that these emotions have on us.

12.  Though it is impossible to avoid all stressful situations we can lead happy and purposeful lives if we learn how to manage our reactions to the inevitable pressures of life.

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Problems?  Review the page on Sentence Punctuation: Basics or consult our online discussion of Sentence Patterns.

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