Lifetime stressor exposure, health, and well-being in sport performers: Exploring the underlying properties of stressors

Lifetime stressor exposure can influence health and well-being through various pathways, including stress appraisal processes and sympathetic nervous system activation. Although important, research provides information relating to how lifetime stressor exposure influences health and well-being. One unanswered question relates to why lifetime stressor exposure may be harmful, particularly for sport performers. According to theory, it is proposed that this could be due to underlying properties of stressors (e.g., novelty). While researchers have started to examine such properties, the majority of research has focused on their influence on appraising rather than their implications for outcomes and has been limited to acutely stressful situations. The aim of this study was to explore the situational properties of lifetime stressors that are influential for sport performers’ health and well-being. Nine sport performers (7 female, 2 male; Mage = 23.7 years, SD = 4.4) completed a timeline of their life story, followed by a semi-structured interview (Mduration = 92.44 minutes; SD = 26.52). We analysed data using reflexive thematic analysis and developed four themes: (1) the timing of stressors in quick succession creates a domino effect; (2) limited past experience enhances vulnerability to novel situations; (3) lack of clarity surrounding stressful events impacted health and well-being; and (4) prolonged and long-lasting stressors drain the tank until there is nothing left. This study shows that lifetime stressor exposure may lead to detriments in health and well-being when the stressors experienced by sport performers coincide with other life events, are novel and/or ambiguous in nature, and long-lasting.