När jag blir stressad försöker jag tänka på något positivt.

Bli means become / get, while vara means be.

So:

• jag blir stressad = I get stressed
• jag är stressad = I am stressed

In this sentence, the idea is that stress happens to you at that moment or in that situation, so blir is the natural choice.

Blir is the present tense of bli.

Here it means get or become:

• bli trött = get tired
• bli arg = get angry
• bli stressad = get stressed

It is very common in Swedish to use bli + adjective for a change of state.

This is because Swedish follows the V2 rule in main clauses: the finite verb usually comes in the second position.

The sentence begins with the subordinate clause:

• När jag blir stressad = When I get stressed

After that whole clause, the main clause starts, and the verb must come before the subject:

• försöker jag tänka ...

So:

• När jag blir stressad försöker jag tänka ... = correct
• När jag blir stressad jag försöker tänka ... = incorrect

This is a very important Swedish word-order pattern.

Because När jag blir stressad is a subordinate clause.

In Swedish subordinate clauses, the normal order is usually:

• subject + verb

So:

• när jag blir stressad = correct

The inversion rule (verb before subject) applies to the main clause, not usually inside the subordinate clause.

It can feel like either in English, depending on context.

Here när introduces a general situation:

• När jag blir stressad ...

This can mean:

• When I get stressed ...
• Whenever I get stressed ...

If the sentence describes a habit or repeated pattern, English often prefers whenever, but Swedish still commonly uses när.

Because there are two clauses, and each clause needs its own subject.

• När jag blir stressad
• försöker jag tänka på något positivt

Even though both subjects are I, Swedish still says jag in both clauses, just like English does:

• When I get stressed, I try to think of something positive.

Some Swedish verbs can be followed directly by an infinitive without att. Försöka is commonly used this way.

So:

• försöker tänka = try to think

This is normal and natural Swedish.

You may also sometimes see försöka att, but in everyday usage att is often left out here.

Försöker is the present tense of försöka, meaning try or attempt.

So:

• jag försöker = I try
• hon försöker = she tries

In this sentence, it expresses an effort or strategy:

• I try to think of something positive

Because tänka på means think about / think of something.

Compare:

• tänka = think, be thinking
• tänka på något = think about something / think of something

So here:

• tänka på något positivt = think of something positive / think about something positive

The preposition på is required with this meaning.

Because något is a neuter-type word meaning something, and the adjective that follows it is usually in the neuter singular form.

So:

• något bra = something good
• något viktigt = something important
• något positivt = something positive

The basic adjective is positiv, and the neuter form is positivt.

Yes. It is still an adjective, but the noun is understood rather than spoken.

So något positivt literally means something like:

• something positive
• something positive thing (not natural English, but it shows the structure)

Swedish often uses adjectives this way after words like:

• något = something
• inget = nothing
• allt = everything

For example:

• något nytt = something new
• inget konstigt = nothing strange

Here stressad functions as an adjective, meaning stressed.

Historically it comes from a participle-like form, but for a learner, the most useful thing is to treat it as an adjective in sentences like:

• Jag är stressad = I am stressed
• Hon blir stressad = She gets stressed

It agrees like an adjective when needed.

In Swedish, a comma there is often optional, and modern Swedish tends to use fewer commas than English.

So both of these are possible:

• När jag blir stressad försöker jag tänka på något positivt.
• När jag blir stressad, försöker jag tänka på något positivt.

The version without the comma is very common and looks natural.

In careful speech, it is något, but in everyday spoken Swedish it is very often reduced to nåt.

So you may hear:

• tänka på något positivt in writing
• tänka på nåt positivt in speech

Both are common, but något is the standard written form.

Sometimes, depending on context, yes. But positivt specifically means positive, not exactly good.

So:

• något positivt = something positive
• något bra = something good

In this sentence, positivt suggests a deliberately optimistic or encouraging thought, which fits the idea of dealing with stress.