Cold water immersion

They are invigorating.  Ask the armed forces, the scout movement and various sadistic groups (so I am told).  

Other than that, we are not allowed to dispense medical advice on this forum as you well know !  


To be honest (personal opinion) I have a feeling that jumping in freezing cold water - especially if you've got an underlying health condition - could do more harm than good.  Unless you're Siberian, maybe.  Ask your GP.  

Not far from where I am, the local maniacs all jump into the sea each Christmas Day.  Tradition they call it.  

There's an all weather sea swimming group on the island, but I can't swim so thats a no no. I was thinking more of the Wim Hoff type of stuff, not that I'd be chopping holes in polar ice and jumping in.

I didn't think of it as asking for medical advice, just had anyone tried it and if they found it helpful, these rules are getting in the way of canvassing opinions.

There's an all weather sea swimming group on the island, but I can't swim so thats a no no. I was thinking more of the Wim Hoff type of stuff, not that I'd be chopping holes in polar ice and jumping in.

I didn't think of it as asking for medical advice, just had anyone tried it and if they found it helpful, these rules are getting in the way of canvassing opinions.

Maybe she did. On the other hand, she could be talking about an electric toothbrush. My Oral B Plaque Remover doesn’t allow me to focus in the mirror when I’m brushing my teeth. I know it’s time to change the brush head when my vision comes back.

The bit on my acupressure device that you hold to an acupuncture point is only about 1.5 - 2mm, it’s a bit like sticking a pen on the spot where a needle would go. I have had it for years and I swear by it in an emergency.

ArchaeC said:

I know what you mean about those vibrating things that are meant to relax you

Other than being Ann Summers-ish, I thought TheCatWoman meant Tens Machines or similar.

They can certainly make you feel ill if you stick one of those pads in the wrong place & turn it up too high. 

Oh no, the device doesn’t visibly pulse, it’s an electric current that can sting if it’s turned up. It’s  nothing like those things that make your eyes wobble.

I know what you mean about those vibrating things that are meant to relax you. The school where I used to work got a massage chair. It made me feel ghastly when it was switched on and I nearly vomited. I came away with a headache, and I rarely get head aches. 

TheCatWoman said:

I can't be doing with anything that vibrates, (yes those too, you naughtly folks), I find it painful and its like my brain misfires and my eyeballs go wobbly and my teeth hurt.

We live in strange times.  You can bet some would pay good money for a device that engineered a reaction like that...  and yet you complain !  

It can be quite common I'm told, but not quite to the extent that my body pinged them out, she'd put in about 8 or 10 and after 15 mins there'd only be one left in my skin!

I can't be doing with anything that vibrates, (yes those too, you naughtly folks), I find it painful and its like my brain misfires and my eyeballs go wobbly and my teeth hurt.

Good gracious! Are you electrified? 

My dog goes for acupuncture and laser therapy for his joints which are showing signs of osteoarthritis now that he is 11 years old. His body doesn’t fire them out and neither did mine when I used to have acupuncture.

I now have one of those electronic acupressure devices and I learned which points to target for anxiety. I’m perhaps not using it the way it was intended, but I found that if the strength of the stimulation is turned up, it is very hard to think of anything else other than the electrical current going into my body. I imagine that if nothing else, it is giving my brain a rest from intrusive anxieties. Perhaps I need more electricity through my body in order to be productive (disclaimer, not a medical treatment or condition). I am concerned that needle pinging is the norm now.

An accupuncture needle is about the size of a cats whisker  they don't hurt going in, them pinging out by themselves is a bit alarming though, it feels like one of the weirder and more comic martial arts, lol.

Well I don't know, do I?

I'm about as adept on needle variants as some people are with electronics !  

WTF knitting needles?

Well I've learned something today.  For all I knew they rammed knitting needles into the affected area.  I'll be sure to take the memory of your experience with me should I ever need to raise the subject in my surgery ! 

I wouldn't trust the physio's round here, they're useless, one asked me what core strength was and why it's important, the other one I saw was differently useless and didn't understand why I was there.

The accupuncture you get on the NHS isn't the same as traditional accupuncture, the NHS type was brought into China during the Cultural Revolution and aims to be more like Western medicine, in that it treats the symptoms of illness rather than attempting to keep you well and stopping you from getting ill. I did have it and my body spat the needles out as soon as the nurse put them in, which was apparently a good sign and my body was working well! It surprised me how far the needles pinged, about 6ft away in most cases. The only time it felt like it had made a difference was when I had a stiff shoulder muscle, the rest of the time it did no good whatsoever. I do know that the traditional one is good for pain and even anesthesia

Yes, there's a lido near me also.  Never been in it, it is only open in the Summer months but apparently it isn't that warm - ever. 

I do empathise.  I cannot take most painkillers, and having asthma means I am not allowed quite a few anyway. 

I do know someone who lives up in Cleveland and she swims in the sea there regularly.  I think she's insane, but there we are.  They call themselves the mermaids apparently.  Likely they've drank half a litre of Scotch each before jumping in, but they don't admit that bit. 

My GP surgery now has a physio that is apparently referring people to acupuncture as a means of pain control.  Of course it is a different ICB, but maybe worth asking there, or speaking to Physio in general.  

Nobody will teach me swim in the sea, they all freak out and tell me to find a pool that has no chlorine, none round here, I'd probably be allergic to the rubber in arm bands, lol!

It's the sadistic thing that concerns me, so many people who recomend these types of things seem very gung ho adreniline junkies, the total opposite of me, having PTSD means anything adreniline inducing is a no no. But I would like to find more things to help me cope with pain and inflamation that I'm not allergic too. I've tried messing about with my diet to no avail, I use supplements such as curcumin and aloe vera, the pain clinic has given up on me, the only thing left to try is traditional accupuncture which I can't afford.

I'm not going to make jokes about rubber rings & armbands, but I guess that under certain circumstances - and if you knew the tide was coming in, rather than out - a dip in the cold sea would be a good thing. 

I just get into the habit now of writing 'cannot give medical / legal' advice so often that anything that might carry even the slightest potential of a trip to A&E should come with an ironic disclaimer. 

I remember seeing an old Michael Palin travel show in which he dipped himself into somewhere frozen.  Perhaps it was on YouTube.