Cold Water Therapy – 1 to 1 – £50
Introduction to Cold Water Therapy Workshop – £45 (Max 4 people). Scroll Down for dates!

My first cold water dip was a chilly 4 degrees in a lake with a qualified Wim Hof instructor.  I was hooked.

There has been a lot of press and information lately regarding Cold Water Therapy and its many benefits. As a relatively ‘new’ therapy science is slowly realising its  benefits – of which there are many.  I first ‘discovered’ Cold Water Therapy for myself in March 2022 – it was something that I have had an interest in for a while and (as with everything I do) I wanted to learn more about it before I took the plunge – so to speak!  I read the books, did the research and then decided I was ready.

Wim Hof has made Cold Water more mainstream but I wasn’t interested in teaching his techniques but I was interested in learning more about how I could incorporate the amazing feeling I get by submerging in the cold and bringing it to my lovely clients so they can reap the benefits too.

So What Are The Benefits of Cold Water Therapy?

Stress and Anxiety

Cold Water Therapy has an amazing effect on stress and anxiety.  Most of our lives we spend in our comfort zones – from living in ambient temperatures, being safe in our cars so we don’t get exposed to the elements, we shop online so we don’t leave the comfort of our homes – in fact we tend to be motivated by pleasure and comfort!  However as we get used to these feelings of comfort we lose our ability to tap into our amazing physiology that lets us adapt to this discomfort.  The body has lost its ability to expend energy to defend itself which can lead to health issues.  By immersing in the cold we trick our bodies to move away from its comfort zone so those amazing defences can switch back on.  By putting ourselves into the extreme conditions we ‘kick start’ our bodies natural defences – applying ‘good stress’ so our body learns to adapt.   The more we repeat cold exposure, the more the shock of the cold reduces as we adapt.  Our metabolism becomes more active making us feel more alive, and as we learn to relax into this stress, our resilience improves.

If we don’t have this ability to adapt we get stressed by the smallest of things – and that becomes anxiety.
When was the last time you got stressed by driving in traffic, receiving an unwanted email or a disagreement with a friend/family member?  By exposing your body to the cold – which is a stress, your body begins to learn how to handle that  stress in a safe and manageable way.  We also use breath-work and relaxation techniques to enable you to become more able to deal with life’s stresses.

Vagus Nerve

The Vagus Nerve forms part of your Parasympathetic Nervous System (PNS) which in turn  is responsible for lots of functions in our body’s that happen automatically  such as digestion, the immune system, and your heart rate to name just a few.

The PNS helps your body go into the Relax and Repair mode.  Cold Water Therapy allows you to ‘hack’ into the nervous system – the cold activates the stress response – the Sympathetic Nervous System – and then your body regulates itself into that PNS state.

Another way to think about it is we exercise our bodies to train our cardio system and respiratory system to allow it to function better  – cold water trains our nervous system to become aware of the different states of arousal and hyper-arousal that we get when the body is stressed.

Immune Response

This is an emerging area of cold water research but there is some science that backs up the idea that cold water exposure  can actually activate your immune system,
Autoimmune diseases, which are when the body’s immune system turns inward and starts attacking itself, are on the rise.  Cold water therapy is already being used in the treatment of autoimmune issues like Multiple Sclerosis, Fibromyalgia and Crohn’s Disease.  Due to diet, lack of exercise and decreased efficiency of our body to respond well our body can hold  chronic low grade inflammation which can sometimes become precursors for full blown autoimmune issues if not kept in check. Therefore, it would be reasonable to suggest that cold water therapy could be a very good way to prevent autoimmune issues along with the prevention of colds and flu.

Inflammation

The body has a natural inflammatory response that is designed to protect the body from any foreign objects such as pollens, bacteria, viruses and tissue damage.  This wonderful ability is both a solution and a problem to the human body particularly when the body is unable to turn off this response.   Inflammation gets uncomfortable and problematic.

When we immerse in the cold the blood vessels contract and particularly if used after exercise it can stop the inflammatory cells and all the free radicals from getting into the damaged muscles which will help muscles recover quicker.

Systemic inflammation can also be caused by hormonal or metabolic issues as well as with exercise. A lot of the  health issues people suffer with today – such as  obesity, severe menopause symptoms,  menstrual cycle issues, auto-immune issues, hormone imbalance and poor liver function are a result of our lifestyle. This on top of other factors such as the food we eat, low exposure to the environmental stressors such as cold, high exposure to EMF stressors; low time spent in nature will all bring more stress on the body which will bring more systemic inflammation.

Because  autoimmune diseases tend to come about as a result of chronic inflammation (and cold water therapy helps some autoimmune issues), it is not a small stretch to wonder if exposure to cold water therapy  could help prevent this systemic inflammation that our modern lifestyle leads us to.

As well as the above Cold Water Therapy has also has a huge amount of other potential benefits including:

Weight Loss

Pain Relief

Thyroid Function

Insulin Sensitivity

Circulation

Pain relief

Sleep

Each session incorporates an introduction to how Cold Water Therapy works, Breath-work and meditation while we prepare for the Cold. Importance of understanding what happens to the body’s physiology when we dip into the cold, dangers,  how to warm up safely,  individual support whilst entering the cold and support after coming out.

Cold Water Therapy is available as a One to One Session as well as a Workshop.

Introduction to Cold Water Therapy Workshop

Saturday 11th November 2023 
1pm – 3pm

Saturday 9th December 2023
1pm – 3pm

Saturday 13th January 2024
1pm – 3pm

Introduction to Cold Water Workshop

If you’d like to try a 2 hour group Cold Water Therapy Workshop then it would be lovely to see you.

Maximum number is 4 people and includes breath work and meditation, along with all the information you’ll need to safely immerse in cold water.  This dip will be in a cold water tank.

Introduction to Cold Water Therapy Workshop

Saturday 9th December 2023
1pm – 3pm

Saturday 13th January 2024
1pm – 3pm