Stress is our mental and bodily reaction to something that we interpret as an emergency situation, a danger, a challenge, or a threat to our physical and mental health. Biological stress (our body’s responses to adapt to environmental pressures) is inherent to human life and a necessary part of it, while psychological stress (what we feel when under mental, physical, or emotional pressure) is usually due to an overload of nervousness.
In the field of engineering and architecture the word “stress” is used to refer to the force applied to a material that can deform, wear, or break it. This term was later adopted by psychology encompassing various experiences involving resources we use to cope with them.
The physiologist and physician Hans Selye, considered the pioneer in the study of stress, took it to denote the psychological phenomenon produced by noxious agents or ‘stressors’. He designated it General Adaptation Syndrome and defined it as the adaptive response of the organism to various stressors. Selye argued that it is a universal reaction to all kinds of threats and dangers and that it is not the stress that oppresses us but our reaction to it.
The origin of this psychophysical phenomenon is due to evolutionary reasons: man had to preserve his survival facing dangerous situations. Today, a ‘dangerous’ situation is considered to be one in which we are under pressure from work, family, economic problems, or the activities we are engaged in.
Two characteristic aspects of today’s world are the rush and the demand for ever-increasing performance. Today’s life is distinguished by the fact that we are always running after something. The perception of not having enough time to accomplish the desired tasks within a certain period arises from the constant tension of meeting deadlines and objectives, therefore, the activation of stress is persistent.
According to psychologist and professor Richard Lazarus, stress occurs when we perceive that the demands of a situation are beyond our ability to cope. While a certain level of stress is positive for coping with everyday situations, prolonged stress is not advisable due to its harmful effects on health.
We can deduce that stress is subjective: the same context can be a stress trigger for some; while for others it is indifferent and this is due to our evaluative discrepancy. Generally, it is uncertainty that triggers stress, i.e. our doubt whether a danger or a certain situation is really a threat.
Emotions and stress are interrelated since a stressful experience may generate fear or distress while an emotion such as anxiety may provoke stress. Stress gives rise to a specific emotion but not necessarily all negative emotions produce a stress reaction.
The level of stress increases or decreases according to our inner dialogue. If we are self-confident, we are likely to generate positive monologues. On the contrary, if we engage in negative inner dialogues we will probably suffer higher levels of stress.
The complexity of the task influences our level of attention and effort required to perform it successfully. Easy executions can be performed with medium-high levels of stress while in more complex ones we will achieve better results with low levels of stress.
Stress can be absolute, such as the imminent release of an avalanche, being involved in an accident, extreme cold, being stuck on a chairlift; or it can be relative: a situation interpreted as unpredictable or uncontrollable. In the face of absolute stress, our response generally tends to be adaptive for survival reasons. Absolute stressors although rare, provoke the greatest physiological reactions and due to the impact they cause when skiing, there is a tendency to pay more attention to them because of their negative effects.
Practicing a physical activity like skiing produces a mental health benefit and experiencing a certain level of stress is natural. While it may be generated due to our reaction to a perceived lack of control, it also helps us in preparing to cope and adapt to the different situations that arise. If we resist, do not know how to, or cannot adapt to changes in a certain context, we will be a victim of stress.
When perceiving a threat, we may react with modifications in some of the following aspects:
- In the physiological aspect, our heart and respiratory rate increases, muscles contract preparing for sudden movements due to increased channeling of blood causing superficial blood vessels to constrict and our skin to go pale, pupils dilate to allow more light in, our mouth dries because the salivary glands stop secreting, and our body begins to increase its temperature thus transpiration compensates for overheating.
- In the psycho-affective aspect we exhibit anxiety and general worry, loss of concentration and confidence, difficulty in making decisions, discomfort and irritability.
- In the motor aspect we experience muscular tension, cramps, loss of fine coordination, and decreased fluidity of movements, among other peculiarities.
- In the cognitive aspect there is decreased concentration and greater distractibility, inability to maintain our attentional focus outside personal feelings and internal experiences, indecision or diminished capacity in decision making, excessive concern for possible negative evaluations of our own performance, exaggerated increase or decrease of the importance of certain events, intrusive thoughts of failure, ignoring positive events, visual distortion, and return of old technique habits.
- On the behavioral aspect there is a general decrease in our performance, predisposition to accidents, and a defensive posture.
