你的下一個裡程碑式生日快到瞭嗎？邁入人生一個新的十年也許會讓許多人感到不安。這往往會讓人把自己與身邊的人作比較，具體可能表現為頻繁關註社交媒體上他人的生活，從而對自己的現狀感到焦慮，並不斷思考社會對這個年齡的自己有什麼樣的要求和期許。但心理學傢們認為，我們與其被這些問題困擾，不如把重要生日當作一個契機，短暫地停下腳步，想一想接下來想要什麼樣的生活，然後為自己制定一些實際可行的小目標。本文淺談如何應對人生裡程碑式生日給人帶來的壓力。
詞匯：birthday anxiety 生日焦慮癥
1 When’s your next big birthday? How do you feel about that? Do you feel you need to do something spectacular to mark it? Are you excited by the prospect, or dreading the future?
2 We usually think of birthdays as a time to celebrate, but they can also cause stress and worry. Research suggests that this can be even stronger for ‘9-enders’, the 29, 39 and 49-year-olds who are worried about the milestone they are about to reach. What is it that makes a number that ends in zero so daunting?
3 New decades can seem like a fresh start where we evaluate how we are doing. The problem is that many of us look for something to compare with. This might be people that we know or that we follow on social media, or just what we think society expects us to have achieved by a certain age. Any differences can lead us to question ourselves. This links to other stresses that can come with getting older. We might worry that there is limited time to achieve society’s expectations. We may also know people from older generations who had health problems at a certain age, and fear that the same thing will affect us.
4 So, what can we do? Psychologists advise a few steps. Many agree that it’s important to celebrate or mark your birthday in your own way. Do something you genuinely enjoy to avoid feeling the pressure of having to celebrate in a particular way. Another key piece of advice that psychologists offer is that we should use the opportunity to reflect on our lives, but in positive ways. First, consider what you have achieved recently and record those achievements. Then decide what you want to achieve next, and what steps you can take to get there. Having achievable goals can help give our lives greater purpose.
5 If we can celebrate our successes, set ourselves realistic and achievable goals, and find a way to spend our day that we really enjoy, then maybe we’ll find it much easier to deal with those big milestone birthdays.
測驗與練習
一、將標題和段落配對。
Paragraph 1 ________
Paragraph 2 ________
Paragraph 3 ________
Paragraph 4 ________
Paragraph 5 ________
a. Comparing with expectations
b. End-of-decade anxiety
c. Quarter-life crises
d. Individual perceptions
e. Your next big birthday
f. Define your own birthday
g. Dealing with milestones
二、根據文章內容選出正確的選項。
1. Look at paragraph 1. What does ‘it’ refer to in the following sentence? Do you feel you need to do something spectacular to mark it?
a. how you feel
b. the future
c. your next big birthday
2. Who are 9-enders?
a. people who dread their birthday
b. people whose age ends in 9
c. 90-year-olds
3. The most dangerous comparisons are with people on social media.
a. True
b. False
c. Not given
4. Psychologists say we should choose our own way to celebrate our birthdays.
a. True
b. False
c. Not given
5. How can we find greater purpose in life?
a. meeting social expectations
b. having realistic targets
c. comparing with our friends
三、用下列單詞完成對本文的總結。
30, 40 and 50 are all 1) _______ birthdays. People find them hard because it’s easy to 2) _______ yourself to society’s 3) _______ and feel bad because of it. Instead, 4) _______ on your achievements to give yourself 5) _______.
compare
evaluate
reflect
fresh start
expectations
greater purpose
milestone
（答案見詞匯表後）
詞匯表
spectacular 盛大的
mark 紀念，標志
prospect 前景，可能發生的事
dread 畏懼，擔憂
celebrate 慶祝
milestone 裡程碑，重要節點
daunting 令人畏懼的
fresh start 新的開始
evaluate 評估
compare 比較
a certain age 某個特定年齡
expectation 期望
generation 一代
reflect 反思
consider 考慮，思量
achievable 可實現的
greater purpose 更有意義
答案
一、將標題和段落配對。
Paragraph 1 e) Your next big birthday
Paragraph 2 b) End-of-decade anxiety
Paragraph 3 a) Comparing with expectations
Paragraph 4 f) Define your own birthday
Paragraph 5 g) Dealing with milestones
二、根據文章內容選出正確的選項。
1. c. ‘It’ in this sentence refers back to the first sentence ‘When’s your next big birthday?‘
2. b. Research suggests that this can be even stronger for ‘9-enders’, the 29, 39 and 49-year-olds who are worried about the milestone they are about to reach.
3. c. Not given. The text says who or what people might compare themselves to, but doesn’t say which is the most dangerous.
4. a. True. Psychologists advise a few steps. Many agree that it’s important to celebrate or mark your birthday in your own way.
5. b. Having achievable goals can help give our lives greater purpose.
三、用下列單詞完成對本文的總結。
30, 40 and 50 are all milestone birthdays.People find them hard because it’s easy to compare yourself to society’s expectations and feel bad because of it. Instead, reflect on your achievements to give yourself greater purpose.
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