To most people, standing on a ledge with no rail 233m above a busy city, sounds like one of the most stressful things you can do.

But for 22-year-old Alwarith al Harthy, a busy marine mechanic from Ibra, the SkyJump he did at the Macau Tower in China on January 11 was a form of stress relief.

The Macau Tower is the world’s tenth tallest freestanding building, measuring 338m tall at its highest point.

The SkyJump at the tower is the world’s highest commercial decelerator descent according to the Guinness World Records – it is 41m higher than the second highest SkyJump in the world.

Alwarith has always been a thrill seeker. In 2008, he skydived in Dubai, but he said it never gave him the rush he was after because he was with someone during the jump. He was on a trip to Macau when the tour guide took them to the tower and told them about SkyJump, and moments later Alwarith was signing up for a jump that cost around RO70 and would see him fall the length of around 2.3 football pitches in 20 seconds at 75km/h.

“The people I was with were screaming when I went to do the jump. They started singing the songs we sing for the national team here. I was so proud to do it. The people in charge of the jump asked me where I was from, and when I said Oman they had no idea where it was, so I said near Dubai. They asked if I was Arab and of course I said yes. They then started speaking to each other and said I was the first Arab and Omani they knew who had done the jump.”

After seeing a programme on television where high-powered businessmen fed sharks to de-stress and detach themselves from their lives, Alwarith decided to try jumping to see if the resultant adrenaline rush helped his stress levels.

“After the jump, I felt new again and I feel like I have more energy and fewer nerves in my everyday life. I feel more confident because after jumping from such a height, what do I have to be scared of?” he said.

While for some the scariest part of the activity would have been the jump itself, Alwarith rather surprisingly has a fear of lifts, meaning he had to conquer this before he could begin the trip to the top of the building for his jump. He also said that while his adrenaline was pumping, it was only when he stood on the ledge ready to jump that nerves began to set in.

“The scariest part is when you put your feet on the ledge ready to jump. They tell you not to look down when you jump but you can’t really help it.” When it comes to his emotions during the jump, Alwarith said, “When you are falling you don’t think of anything; there is nothing going through your mind. The only thing in your head when you are standing at the top is ‘jump, jump, jump’.

Once you reach a certain point it slows down and pulls you slightly; and as soon as you feel the rope tighten, everything comes back to your head. Then you land and it feels like you have clicked F5 on the computer and refreshed your life.”

Despite being the eldest of his siblings, Alwarith didn’t tell his family that he was going to do the jump as he thought they might have tried to stop him. So when he returned to the sultanate he sat down with them and showed the shocked family the photos of his adventure. Alwarith said that he would encourage any of his friends and family to do a similar jump. “If you have stress, don’t go to the coffee shop and drink coffee – just try bungee jumping or something like it.”