Some people will sacrifice almost anything for it – money, homes, personal safety. Even sex.
“Flow,” says Joe Ripperger, is an elixir that can so captivate climbers they will choose a dirtbag existence in order to maintain the feeling.
A practising psychiatrist since 1993 and an accomplished climber and mountaineer, Ripperger harbours a special interest in mood disorders. The phenomenon of flow, he believes, is the result of a mental process born of maximized performance.
Most people, he says, have experienced flow at some point in their lives.
But what is it? How does it happen? When does it appear? What are the conditions that allow flow to occur and re-occur?
On Wednesday (Feb. 19), Ripperger will tackle those and other intriguing questions as he explains the mental processes that support climbing performance, answering why climbers climb mountains with a focus on the highly satisfying phenomenon of flow, and how climbers recognize it, use it and lose it.
Ripperger’s presentation, The Life of Flow, takes place at the Canmore Seniors Centre. Hosted by the Alpine Club of Canada Rocky Mountain Section, the talk begins at 7 p.m. and is free of charge and open to the public.
A climber for three decades, Ripperger said he was introduced to rock climbing by a friend who thought the activity might lift his spirits and take his mind off a knee injury that had sidelined his performance as a competitive track athlete.
“I immediately fell in love with the sport,” Ripperger said. “Unlike competitive running, climbing is fun nearly all of the time and adds an adventurous component. In track, I was accustomed to long arduous runs and interval training, followed by competition with other athletes.”
While he liked the races and found they brought him brief flow experiences, the training – the bulk of the activity – wasn’t fun.
“Climbing is so different from that,” he said. “In climbing, I’m able to enjoy the same athleticism and mental challenge of racing, but with added flow experiences and the beauty of the mountains. And with a few exceptions, climbing is fun all the time and the flow experiences can last for hours.”
When he learned to lead climb, he said, he discovered the experience was more intense and more satisfying.
“Although I’ve experienced flow in other sporting events and even surgery during my time working in a research lab, nothing is more satisfying than lead climbing or heading out on an exposed ridgeline in the mountains,” he said.
And yes, he added, he was even at one point enticed to live as a dirtbag.
“After being accepted into medical school, I took one year off from school to travel in Europe and Africa in order to make a final decision between a career in medicine or climbing,” Ripperger said. “The defining moment came at the end of that year, when my best friend and climbing partner died during a rock avalanche at Chamonix in 1985.”
Only 23 at the time, witnessing the accident took a major toll on his confidence. He followed through with medical school and became a psychiatrist.
Through the years, he’s maintained a deep interest not just in climbing, but in the mental aspects of the activity.
“Because climbing is inherently dangerous, I’ve always felt compelled to both understand and justify the benefits of the risk taking, not only for my non-climbing friends and family, but also for me,” he explained.
“The concept of flow seems to explain the immense satisfaction from climbing and it also helps justify the risk taking. It’s been my experience that non-climbers sometimes interpret mountain climbing as ‘death wish’ or adrenalin-seeking behaviour or, worse, simply being irresponsible. For me, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
“Most dedicated climbers understand that being a climber can actually be a way of life, which builds character and confidence that can then be applied later in our everyday lives. And I believe that flow is the primary energy source that allows this all to happen.”
As such, he’s even incorporated flow into his treatment strategy for patients suffering from mood disorders.
“Mood disorders generally fall into two types – depression and bipolar disorder – that are sometimes treated with medication,” he said.
“Some of the main symptoms of mood disorders are automatic negative thoughts or being stuck in your head. Because flow requires concentration and focus on an external action, it can actually be a useful tool to facilitate escape from one’s internal negative thoughts and, therefore, bring much needed relief from mental pain.”
