We cold showers

I guess there aren’t many of us, at least I haven’t met even a handful of fellow tribesmen.

“How so?” you ask, “I always take a cold shower!” When I ask more about it, it almost always comes out that “take a cold shower” means taking an extensive warm or hot shower and then, as a kind of finish, quenching the body with a cold shower.

But no! Cold shower works like this:

It is winter. It snowed last night, the temperature outside is below zero. A moment ago I was dozing in the warm bed, now I’m standing in the shower tub, my hand controls the faucet -3-2-1: “Alarm! Everyone on deck!! Turn on the heating!!!” The icy water falls first over my left leg, then my right leg, then my left arm, my right arm and finally my whole body. Not long. But long enough to get clean. Except for washing hair, which is only possible with cold water in summer. I turn the water off and I’m AWAKE. The body heat has kicked in, the senses are clear and the day can begin.

THIS is a cold shower!

I’ve been doing this for a number of years – summer and winter – and I love it. Only a moment of overcoming, then the joy of the refreshment prevails. The day begins with a thirst for action.

Apart from the immediately noticeable effect, other positive effects can also be observed in the long term, for example:

• The body can cope well with winter cold and quickly switches to warming up.
• Colds have little chance.
• Courage and resilience are trained.
• …

The last aspect in particular is of great importance: I can avoid the unpleasant and curl up in a false sense of security or I gather the courage to face adversity and develop my strengths. Every cold shower in the morning is a decision to do the latter. A workout.

This is not my invention at all. In some countries where it can get very cold in winter (Sweden for example) there is ice bathing. I assume for the same reason and with a similar effect.

However, it is important to note that the cold will drain energy from the body if left on for too long. In the long run, this can damage the kidneys. It is therefore important to keep the cold stimulus short and then warm up the body well. It is not forbidden, but rather extremely beneficial to relax in a warm bed for a few minutes after a cold shower in order to restore your balance.

Balance is very important at all. We don’t grow, we don’t grow up, by eliminating all potential unpleasantness from our lives. But when we find the appropriate response to the challenges we face, we grow big and strong. We are also gaining knowledge and understanding and can act more and more independently. That makes us independent of paternalism.

So how about a little challenge? Make a 14-day schedule and tick each day you took a cold shower like this:

MONDAY	TUESDAY	WEDNESDAY	…
x	x	x	…

You don’t need to wash your hair cold, you don’t want to get a headache. If after the 14 days you have gotten used to the cold shower and you like it, then stick with it. Then it says: “Welcome to the club!”