The weeks, days, or hours leading up to a climb can and probably will be stressful. Here are some ways to minimize or cope with stress:

• Practice, practice, practice! - Nothing is more stressful during a climb than trying to remember how to tie an alpine butterfly knot when you're cold, tired, and hungry. Be sure to practice all of the skills you may need before you start a climb. 

• Talk to trusted climb leaders or climbing mentors - Let them know what aspects of the climb make you the most nervous. Ask them to walk you through the route, technical skills needed, and safety systems they plan to use. 

• Get good sleep - Climbing is exhausting. Nothing beats a good night's rest. Limit alcohol or other substances that may impact your sleep. 

• Prep your gear - Your climb leader will send a list of required and recommended gear. Start packing a few days before to make sure you have everything. Scrambling to find your headlamp right before hopping in the car can add a ton of unnecessary stress. 

Whether we are climbing a mountain, scrambling up alpine rock, or conditioning on the trail, we all reach the summit together. The best teammates aren't always the ones with the most technical experience. The best teammates help you be your best. 

If you find yourself struggling on a climb, please speak up. Ask for help early before you need help. There is no shame asking for help. 

If you are on a climb with someone who is struggling, offer help. This can be as simple as words of encouragement, a funny joke to take their mind off the endless slog, or literally carrying their weight (e.g., offering to carry the rope or extra gear from their pack). 

As you journey through BCEP together, please support each other with kindness, respect, and inclusivity. 

Box (or square) breathing can significantly reduce your stress before, during, and after a climb. This is a fantastic tool that every climber should practice. When you start to feel our heart race, take a moment complete a few rounds of box breathing. It can significantly reduce your stress in the moment and refocus your energy. Check out the video to the left for more info. 

Should you tell a climb leader you are scared or have a past experience that could impact you on a climb? Absolutely! 

From Mazama Climb Leader Tim Scott to a former climb team member:

I can easily understand how you would have reservations about climbing Mt. Hood given your backstory. I would suggest to you, and to every other climber - novice and otherwise - that a health respect for mountains and the risks that we take when we venture into the high country is warranted. Poor outcomes await those who underestimate what can go wrong in those places. Fear is a valid and natural response to the awareness of those risks. People who lack fear in those circumstances are not people I'm interested in climbing with. The challenge is to accept the fear while doing what must be done to mitigate the risks and achieve the objective. 

One of my favorite ways of thinking about this is to cultivate a relationship with the inner edge of fear. I first heard this from Eugene Lewins during an Intermediate Climbing School (ICS) rock lecture and it stuck with me since. By inner edge of fear, he means the mental and physiological experience of fear where you can still think and act rationally. The outer edge would be when you're panic-stricken, can't move, and the only thoughts you have are your imminent demise. The idea is to understand what fear feels like, how to control it while making good decisions, and taking effective action. An important note here is that deciding not to proceed is always a valid decision. 

Whether it is stress at home or work, physical or mental health challenges, or something else, some days just don't go our way. Some days are just harder than others. In climbing, we sometimes call those "high-gravity" days. It's important for us to be kind with ourselves on such days. We can always come back and try again. Remember: the mountain will always be there!

Yes, even Alex Honnold gets stressed out climbing. Check out the video to the left.

Check out the AAC's Climbing Grief Fund (CGF) for additional resources including a mental health provider directory, a story archive, and educational resources. CGF acts as a resource hub to equip the mental health of our climbing community. Even though grief is in the name, it has much more than just grief-related information.