Taking Cold Showers: The Benefits for Working Moms
What would you say if I asked you to take an ice cold shower?
NO WAY!
Or, a hot shower is the one thing I look forward to each morning and I’m NOT giving it up.
But what if you just came in from 90 degree heat? Or what if I told you there were some amazing health benefits from taking a cold shower?
Would you change your answer? Or pause to consider it?
So what do cold showers and working motherhood have to do with each other? What are the benefits?
I’m Hooked
I listen to a lot of podcasts. I’m not faithful to many podcasts, but rather, I'm always looking for recommendations on all kinds of topics. From motherhood and coaching to business, health, and history, you name it and I am game.
I was recently introduced to a podcast called Do the Thing. It’s hosted by Melissa Urban of Whole 30.
I found her through one specific episode called “Cold Showers with Ed Sheeran.” Catchy, right? Well - spoiler alert - Ed Sheeran is not a guest on the podcast. But I enjoyed it anyway.
Urban spends the first half of the episode sharing background, information, and interesting studies on the benefits of cold therapy. Right there, I'm hooked. Not only have there been studies on the physical benefits, but also the impact it can have on depression and anxiety. That intrigued me even more, as someone who manages both.
The idea is that if you can control your breathing, your stress response, while in a cold shower, where you are uncomfortable but safe. Then when you take those skills for managing your stress out into everyday life, and everyday stressful circumstances, you are better equipped to respond and to handle them.
Melissa then walks you through her experiment. A girl after my own heart, because you know I love a good experiment! She committed to 30 days of cold showers and details how she structured the experiment, what the process was like, how long it took to get comfortable in the cold, and how long she actually stood in freezing cold water. Curious? The length of 2 Ed Sheeran songs!
What I Discovered
You know what I discovered?
That turning the dial from warm to cold for the last 30, 45, then 60 seconds, wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.
Now, it doesn't hurt that it's summer here and a cold shower sometimes is what you want when it’s hot out. If I had started this in January or February, I might be singing a different tune.
But whether or not I end up seeing huge health benefits from cold showers, they have already made an impact on my general outlook and perspective.
Previously, a cold shower was not something I ever thought I would voluntarily take. I liked my hot showers, and that was that.
But tell me about the benefits, give me a plan for following through, and share your own experience? Suddenly cold showers sound intriguing.
Nothing has changed in terms of the facts about the cold shower: It's still ice cold. I still have to stand in it naked and cold. But instead of hating it, I kind of liked it, or at least tolerated it. And instead of it sounding like a crazy idea, it sounded like a logical experiment.
The only thing that changed was how I thought about it.
My expectations of a cold shower.
I didn't expect it to be miserable. I expected it to help me.
Motherhood is full of expectations
Maybe you're already connecting the dots. We can change our experience by changing our expectations, our thoughts. And motherhood is full of expectations.
Take bedtime routine. If you expect it to be terrible; if you expect it to be frustrating and exhausting, it probably will be all of those things.
But if you are instead curious about bedtime routine and ask
How can we make memories?
How can I learn to set better boundaries with my toddler?
How can I comfort my child while teaching her independence?
When you are expecting a benefit or to learn something from the experience, suddenly it's not so bad. And you might walk away with more than you expected.
Shifting your perspective is a powerful shift. The most powerful, in my opinion.
How to make the shift
So I’ve convinced you. Where do you start?
Think about the events, routines, activities, or times of day that you dread. What feels hard or not fun? Or what's something that you've been putting off because it sounds miserable? Potty training? Sleep training?
For any examples that you have, next, ask yourself - what can I learn from this? How might I benefit from this? How can I make this more enjoyable?
Then, notice how nothing else changes, only your thinking / your expectations. And how was the experience different?
It really is that simple.
Some of you might get on the experiment bandwagon with me and we can try all sorts of things to see what works and what doesn't.
If you try changing your perspective, or if you try cold showers, let me know!
If you liked this article, you might also like: