You might feel distress if you decide to think of giving a speech as a source of anxiety. Negative stress, or distress, can cause illness or prevent a person from achieving a goal. No matter how capable you are, stress might prevent you from giving your best effort. Distressed individuals who attempt to speak may forget the points they want to communicate. Even though they may have studied the speech for days, when they stand in front of a large group of people, they become disoriented. Their speech seems awkward. They might have an unconfident tone and an overly delicate, trembling voice. The audience can grow disinterested or perplexed.