{"id":285431,"date":"2025-11-11T14:36:07","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T14:36:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/285431\/"},"modified":"2025-11-11T14:36:07","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T14:36:07","slug":"the-science-of-thrill-and-how-voluntary-stress-shapes-resilience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/285431\/","title":{"rendered":"The science of thrill and how voluntary stress shapes resilience"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

A diver explores the deep sea. Experts say taking on manageable challenges in safe conditions boosts confidence and strengthens stress recovery systems.Getty Images<\/p>\n

In this digital era built for ease and instant gratification, intentional discomfort has become a new form of consciousness. <\/p>\n

Across Canada \u2013 from icy lake plunges in Muskoka, Ont. to gruelling trail runs in the Rockies \u2013 people are turning away from screens and seeking controlled challenges as an antidote to digital fatigue and emotional numbness. And it taps into something fundamental in our biology.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnytime we face a challenge, our bodies are designed to deal with it,\u201d says Dr. Tara Perrot, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Dalhousie University. \u201cHormones such as adrenaline, noradrenaline and cortisol make us more alert and focused. When we expose ourselves to discomfort voluntarily, those same systems activate, but because we\u2019re safe and in control, the brain interprets the rush as excitement rather than fear.\u201d<\/p>\n

Voluntary stress, she explains, briefly activates the body\u2019s threat-response network, then allows it to reset. <\/p>\n

\u201cYou know the cold plunge or the bungee jump will be over in seconds. Your stress systems ramp up, then shut down again. That recovery protects the brain from the damage long-term stress can cause.\u201d<\/p>\n

Researchers call this deliberate exposure to manageable stressors hormetic stress \u2013 the idea that short, acute doses of stress strengthen the body\u2019s and brain\u2019s resilience. Exercise, fasting and cold or heat exposure all train the nervous system to recover quickly from pressure.<\/p>\n

The payoff is not just physiological \u2013 it\u2019s psychological. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur brains evolved to need a balance of stimulation and recovery,\u201d Dr. Perrot says. \u201cToo few challenges can dull motivation and lower our sense of reward.\u201d<\/p>\n

That balance may explain why the digital world leaves us anxious yet unsatisfied. Constant input mimics stimulation without providing resolution. Discomfort, by contrast, gives the body a beginning, middle and end \u2013 a story the brain can complete. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe spend our days in climate-controlled comfort,\u201d says explorer and television host George Kourounis, known for documenting some of the planet\u2019s most extreme natural phenomena \u2013 from tornadoes to active volcanoes. \u201cOur homes, cars and offices are all perfectly regulated. But when you\u2019re standing on the edge of a volcano and you can feel the heat and the ground shaking under your feet, it triggers something deep. Primordial.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Jill Heinerth, one of the world\u2019s leading cave divers and underwater explorers, that challenge takes the form of high-stakes expeditions beneath the Earth\u2019s surface. <\/p>\n

\u201cManaging risk is at the heart of everything I do,\u201d she says. \u201cEvery project starts with fear, but it evolves into competence. When I\u2019m underwater, I leave my emotions on the surface so I can focus completely. If something goes wrong, my first action is to take a deep breath and remind myself I\u2019m capable. These experiences have instilled in me a deep sense of confidence, emotional resilience and the hard-earned wisdom that comes from completing more than 8,000 dives.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr. Kourounis echoes that transformation. \u201cWhen you\u2019re standing on the edge of an active volcano or in the path of a tornado, the rest of the world fades away. You\u2019re totally focused and alive in that moment.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more than two decades, he has chased storms on six continents and descended into Turkmenistan\u2019s \u201cDoor to Hell,\u201d a massive crater of burning gas. <\/p>\n

\u201cThat expedition took a year and a half to plan,\u201d he says. \u201cBut when you finally succeed \u2013 when you push through that wall \u2013 you realize you\u2019re capable of far more than you thought.\u201d<\/p>\n

Discomfort, it turns out, may be one of the last honest routes to awe \u2013 the feeling that reminds us we\u2019re part of something larger than ourselves. Mr. Kourounis recalls being violently seasick crossing from New Zealand to Australia when, through the nausea, he noticed glowing blue bioluminescence trailing in the ship\u2019s wake. <\/p>\n

\u201cHad I not been hanging over the rail throwing up, I might never have seen it,\u201d he says. \u201cThat\u2019s the silver lining in the hell.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ms. Heinerth\u2019s expeditions are guided by purpose.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery project involves learning about something new,\u201d she says. \u201cWhen I collaborate with scientists, I become their eyes in a remote place. Every risk I take has to carry value for humanity or the planet.\u201d <\/p>\n

Mr. Kourounis agrees. \u201cDoing difficult things for a reason \u2013 documenting nature, inspiring curiosity \u2013 makes the discomfort meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not everyone can be a storm chaser or deep-sea diver, and our brains don\u2019t need us to be. Dr. Perrot says voluntary challenges that push our limits, no matter the scale, reshape how our brains handle involuntary stressors. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019ve trained your brain and body to recover quickly from controlled stress, you\u2019re better equipped to face real-world adversity,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n

That\u2019s why she encourages people to start small. <\/p>\n

\u201cPick something just outside your comfort zone where you\u2019re almost guaranteed to succeed. You\u2019ll activate your stress system, get that dopamine reward and begin to see difficult situations as less intimidating.\u201d<\/p>\n

She notes that challenges don\u2019t necessarily have to be physical. \u201cMindfulness trains a non-reactive, non-judgmental response to stress. It literally changes how brain regions involved in threat perception function.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s a freezing lake, a mountain trail or a moment of stillness without a screen, deliberate discomfort may be the most natural antidote to modern ease.<\/p>\n

\u201cToo few challenges leave us numb,\u201d Dr. Perrot says. \u201cA little stress, in the right dose, reminds the brain \u2013 and the body \u2013 what it means to be alive.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: A diver explores the deep sea. Experts say taking on manageable challenges in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":285432,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[45169,7809,97,259,260,24296,150579],"class_list":{"0":"post-285431","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mental-health","8":"tag-adveditorial","9":"tag-appwebview","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-mental-health","12":"tag-mentalhealth","13":"tag-noastack","14":"tag-ordid3871304071"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/285431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=285431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/285431\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/285432"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=285431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=285431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=285431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}