 What's the matter with this thing? All right, girl, come and trust me. Stress, what is it? Who does it affect? And what can we do to control it? Stress is the sum of biological reactions to any adverse stimulus, be it physical, mental, emotional, internal, or external, that tends to disturb the body's natural balance. Although it's difficult to determine the full effects of stress on a pilot, it's important to be aware of the stresses we know we can't control. These controllable factors are called self-imposed stresses. These stresses have adverse effects on you and can affect the safety of the flight. These controllable stresses include alcohol consumption, self-medication, drug use, tobacco use, inadequate diet and nutrition, and psychological stress. Fatigue, poor physical fitness, and dehydration are additional stresses, but will be covered in a separate training module. Each self-imposed stress can degrade your piloting skills and can affect your ability to fly safely. It is important to remember that these kinds of stresses are cumulative. Alcohol is a depressant, hypnotic, and addicting drug that in any quantity can have adverse effects on your flying abilities. Brain effects include impairments in reaction time, reasoning, judgment, and memory. Alcohol decreases the ability of the brain to make use of oxygen. This adverse effect can be magnified as a result of simultaneous exposure to altitude, characterized by a decreased partial pressure of oxygen. Visual symptoms include eye muscle imbalance, which leads to double vision and difficulty in focusing. Inner ear effects include dizziness and decreased hearing. Alcohol can cause a significant impairment in performance and can vary in the severity of its effect from person to person. Pilots have shown impairment in their ability to fly an instrument approach or to fly IFR, and even to perform routine VFR flight tasks while under the influence of alcohol. Regardless of the extent of the individual's flying experience. Alcohol is quickly absorbed and transported by the blood throughout the body. The factors that influence alcohol absorption are the type and quantity of food in the stomach, degree of dehydration, concentration of alcohol in the beverage, how fast the alcohol is consumed, and the person's body weight. Our bodies are capable of eliminating approximately a third of an ounce of pure alcohol per hour, even after complete elimination of all the alcohol in the body, there are undesirable effects. A hangover that can last as long as 48 to 72 hours following the last drink. Symptoms commonly associated with a hangover are headache, dizziness, dry mouth, stuffy nose, fatigue, upset stomach, irritability, impaired judgment, and increased sensitivity to bright light. A pilot with these symptoms would certainly not be fit to safely operate an aircraft. The use of alcohol and drugs is regulated by FAR 9117. The regulation states in part that persons may not operate or attempt to operate an aircraft when they are currently under the influence of alcohol, have consumed alcohol within the past eight hours, have a blood alcohol content of 0.04% or greater, are using any drug that adversely affects safety. The number of serious errors committed by pilots dramatically increases at or above concentrations of 0.04% blood alcohol. Be aware of hidden sources of alcohol, such as cough medicine, tonics, et cetera. As a rule, if you're sick enough to require any of these substances, you are too sick to fly. As a minimum, adhere to all of the guidelines of FAR 9117. A more conservative approach is to wait 24 hours from the last use of alcohol before flying. This is especially true if intoxication occurred, or if you plan to fly IFR. Cold showers, drinking black coffee, or breathing 100% oxygen cannot speed up the elimination of alcohol from the body. Ideally, total avoidance of alcohol should be a key element observed by every pilot planning or accomplishing a flight. You should be aware that over-the-counter medications, as well as prescription medications, can affect the safe operation of your aircraft. People tend to have the false impression that if a drug is bought over the counter without a prescription, then it must be safe enough to pilot an aircraft while under its influence. Some drug effects can be intensified when taken at altitude. Consult your local aviation medical examiner to determine any possible side effects that a medication might have on you as a pilot. Self-medicating with over-the-counter medication is not a good idea, as any use can mask unsafe conditions. The desired effect of a drug can have an undesirable effect on a pilot's ability to perform critical tasks. For example, if you were to take an antihistamine for cold symptoms, you might experience side effects such as drowsiness, impaired coordination, or blurred vision. Many side effects of drugs are unknown, and the reaction to medication varies with individuals. Remember, the condition you're self-treating may be as disqualifying as the medication. If an illness is serious enough to require medication, it is also serious enough to prevent you from flying. Our recommendation is, if you have to self-medicate, do not fly. There are several other harmful substances that can affect your ability to fly. For example, the substances one gets from inhaling tobacco smoke. Three substances in tobacco smoke in particular are of importance to a flyer. Those substances are carbon monoxide, tar, and nicotine. Carbon monoxide constitutes up to 2.5% of the volume of cigarette smoke, and even more in cigar smoke. Carbon monoxide combines with hemoglobin about 250 times more readily than oxygen. The result is the hemoglobin is not available to carry oxygen to the tissues. This lack of oxygen produces hypemic hypoxia, which reduces your tolerance to altitude. Tar is the viscous residue left from tobacco smoke and is one of the major cancer-causing agents. It destroys the delicate mucus membranes of the respiratory tract. It also interferes with the natural cleansing action of the lungs and impairs proper oxygenation of the blood thereby reducing tolerance to hypoxia. Nicotine is a potent drug that primarily affects the nerve and muscle tissue. The amount of nicotine found in two cigarettes if injected directly into the bloodstream could be fatal. As smoking becomes less acceptable, some people are opting to chew tobacco or use smokeless tobacco. Unfortunately, the same detrimental effects are present in these products. Practicing good nutrition and having proper eating habits are important in the aviation environment. Unfortunately, disruptions of normal eating routines due to flight schedules are common. Three balanced meals each day are recommended. A balanced meal should consist of 50 to 55% carbohydrates, 15 to 20% protein, and 30% fat. This balance will help the body maintain a good store of energy reserves. Carbohydrates are broken down in your body to glucose, or sugar, which is a readily available source of energy to be used by the muscles and the brain. Proteins are the basic building blocks of all cells in your body. Fats are a very concentrated source of energy and, if not used, remain stored in the body. Vitamins and minerals are also an important component of any diet. For persons who skip meals, there is a possibility that they may become hypoglycemic. Hypoglycemia occurs when the body has low blood sugar. Possible effects of low blood sugar are weakness, headache, irritability, nervousness, trembling, and, in extreme conditions, fainting and convulsions. You can see why skipping meals is not a good idea. Use common sense when preparing for a long flight. Take with you a prepared box lunch. Psychological stresses involve physiological, mental, and emotional responses to socio-cultural family and job-related situations. Personal life changes known to produce significant stress include death of a spouse, divorce, moving or changing jobs, death of a close family member, marriage, being fired from work, and major changes in health. You can also experience stress when confronted with emergencies, unexpected situations, or unfamiliar events during the operation of an aircraft. Some examples of events that can be the direct cause of stress and or aggravate pre-existing stress include flying in bad weather, night operations, performing an instrument approach to minimums, flying in a high-density traffic area, flying into unfamiliar airports, becoming temporarily lost in flight, equipment malfunction, conflicts with other crew members or air traffic control personnel, being subject to flight checks. Stress, per se, is not bad. Some degree of stress is necessary to stay healthy, motivated, and alert. It eliminates boredom and complacency. On the other hand, excessive stress can be unhealthy. It can impair performance, lead to errors, and cause incidents or accidents. Individual tolerance and susceptibility to stress vary from one person to another, as do the individual mechanisms to cope with stress. Stress tends to be cumulative, and, if it is excessive, it can overload your ability to safely operate an aircraft. Even the best pilots in the world are, at one time or another, subject to significant pre-flight stress. This can include problems involving family, job, finances, health, and others. You may not have sufficient reserves available to cope with the demands of flying an aircraft. Stress may be manifested by any of the following signs and symptoms. Anxiety, irritability, excitability, impulsiveness, aggressiveness, emotional or physical isolation from others, problems concentrating, confusion, difficulty remembering important information, increased self-doubt, nightmares, fatigue, trembling, weakness, diarrhea, indigestion, frequent need to urinate, migraine headaches, grinding of the teeth, cold sweating, increased smoking or overeating, loss of appetite, and alcohol and drug use or abuse. An effective approach to deal with stress includes defining the source of stress, evaluating available resources for problem-solving, including professional advice from a psychiatrist or psychologist, exploring possible solutions, including relaxation therapies, taking action, evaluating outcomes, making corrections or changes, if needed, and trying again. You must evaluate your interior and exterior environment on a daily basis. The best decision you can make when experiencing a significant level of stress is not to fly. Stress is the sum of biological reactions to any adverse stimulus, be it physical, mental, emotional, internal or external, that tends to disturb the body's natural balance. It's important to be aware of the stresses we know we can control. These controllable factors are called self-imposed stresses. These controllable stresses include alcohol consumption, self-medication, drug use, tobacco use, inadequate diet and nutrition, and psychological stress. Alcohol is a depressant, hypnotic and addicting drug that, in any quantity, can have adverse effects on your flying abilities. You should be aware that over-the-counter medications, as well as prescription medications, can affect the safe operation of your aircraft. Three substances in tobacco smoke are of importance to a flyer. Those substances are carbon monoxide, tar and nicotine. Practicing good nutrition and having proper eating habits are important in the aviation environment. Psychological stresses involve physiological, mental and emotional responses to sociocultural, family and job-related situations. Even the best pilots in the world are, at one time or another, subject to significant pre-flight stress. This can include problems involving family, job, finances, health and others. An effective approach to deal with stress includes defining the source of stress, evaluating available resources for problem-solving, including professional advice from a psychiatrist or a psychologist, exploring possible solutions, including relaxation therapies, taking action, evaluating outcomes, making corrections or changes, if needed, and trying again. The best decision you can make when experiencing a significant level of stress is not to fly.