Thesis: A high school student's academic stress is caused by emotional and environmental causes, and it results in general unhappiness. I. Academic stress results from maintaining certain beliefs.A. Failure is unthinkable. B. Since time is limited and a good grade is desired, all time should be devoted to schoolwork. C. Value is measured by a person's success in school.II. Academic stress is compounded by other factors. A. Homework is long and time consuming.B. Family, extracurricular activities, and friends require attention.C. Parents place high expectations on their children.III. The result of untreated stress is impaired quality of life.A. There is less time to relax due to school's demands on available time.B. RelationshipsAnxiety is often rooted in fear, and one of the biggest fears of high school is failure. Fear of failure can cause a student to take extreme measures to achieve an academic goal. This may mean sacrificing all available time and exerting all possible energy in order to acquire the desired grade. Putting personal desires aside contributes to losing sight of the things that are important in life, such as household chores and family. Much like how a person defines themselves by how they do their work, a student may be tempted to define themselves based on their grades. The fear of bad grades only compounds the fear of failure. A high school student might communicate their internal struggles if they felt that outside forces were not the cause of their difficulties. As a high school student, it's difficult to make a parent understand that maintaining an A in the school's tough classes is a burden. You might think the student is extremely dedicated to school, but actually needs help. Pursuing a college education is generally considered a good thing, but it's only a good thing if it's done for the right reasons. Parents need to make it clear that succeeding in school does not mean working hard to get perfect grades. Stressed students should release any fears they have had about school and schedule time to participate in enjoyable activities from time to time. Maintaining a positive outlook on life is worth all the effort put into solving the problems that cause it.