How to relax in an ice bath and cold plunging it

tips on how to be in a world that is not always easy, with a bit of root chakra and self-trust mixed in

“The attempt to escape from pain, is what creates more pain.”

― **Gabor Maté**

The first time I decided to play with the sensation of cold was in Switzerland. A few weeks before, my teacher had posted a video of a beautiful, blond Icelandic mermaid swimming in frozen lake. The aquamarine water sparkled, and icebergs floated on the surface. There were heavenly beams of light that pierced icy the depths like angelic blessings.

In the beginning of the scene, the woman is standing at the edge, in bare feet, peeling away layers of clothing to reveal bare skin. Then, she plunges in and swims…and swims…and swims…, through the sparkling sunbeams, past the icebergs, her hair billowing in silky ripples.

Sometimes, You Have to See It to Believe It

Until I saw that video, I did not know such a thing was possible. And at that moment, I saw more than possibility. I saw freedom and beauty. I wanted to feel that.

I hadn’t heard of Wim Hof, otherwise known as The Ice Man, who plunges into freezing water and does amazing feats swimming under large stretches of glacial ice in the sea, or climbing mountains in shorts, enthusiastically speaking about the benefits of cold therapy.

All I knew was that I had seen something I did not know was possible and it was beautiful. I wished I could do it too.

In the late fall of the same year, I was alone in Switzerland, holed up in a very tiny hotel room with only a small sink and a bed. It was one of the pivotal and transformational points in my life. A caterpillar/butterfly moment. They are on-going, you know?

There, in the Lauterbrunnen Valley, I spent two and a half weeks hiking into the mountains and practicing a new open-eyed meditation technique I had discovered while learning what life was like to really step away from everything and simply be. You might say I was lucky. Or blessed. Or surviving. I imagine it was all those things.

It was on one of those magical days that I heard of an alpine lake, so high in the mountains, that they used a helicopter to bring supplies to a nearby mountain hut.

So one morning, I set off to see it for myself. After hiking for hours, I stood at the edge of the most beautiful blue mirror of water that I ever imagined. There were a few French people lying on the sweet-smelling grass nearby, sunning themselves in bikinis. Otherwise, it was quiet. Like a touch of heaven, hidden where the edge of snowcapped peaks meets bright blue sky.

Once You Realize Something Is Possible That You Want, You May Have to Jump off a Cliff or into the Water to Experience It

I hadn’t planned to swim. But in my mind’s eye, as I stood next to the sparkling blue water, I saw the lady in the movie swimming and I knew I wanted to try.

So, after some encouragement from the Frenchlings, I decided to go in. One of them stood nearby and agreed to wait (and rescue me if needed). My dream was bigger than my modesty and I stripped off my clothes, took some deep breaths, and leaped.

Now, just because there was sun in the sky does not mean that water was warm. It was not. It was freezing. I had no training or technique about how to do what I had seen.

I asked myself, as the shock hit my body and I felt the cold pierce my skin, what I had learned that might help me? Twenty years of yoga and my recent open-eyed gazing came to me and I thought: “Just see if you can relax Terra. What if this is simply about relaxing?”

Can You Relax in the Midst of It?

And I did. I did what my body knew how to do and I softened and allowed the very uncomfortable sensations I was feeling to simply be.

And here’s the amazing thing:

Once I did that, what I felt changed from pain and I-have-to-get-out-of-this-cold-water-fast to tingles of energy dancing on my skin. I swam around a bit. I floated on my back. I laughed. I didn’t have to jump right out. I felt alive. More than alive, I felt amazing. The lake and I were talking, feeling, and playing together.

My French lifeguard took some pictures for me. I thought to myself that it was a moment I wanted to revisit when I was old. I was naked. I would never post them (changed my mind on that one; you’re welcome).

Every Experience Is Different

Then, a few days later, I visited another lake and tried again. It was a little harder that time and I didn’t stay as long. The day was cloudy and colder, there were a few people around, and the water was green and not Chartres blue. But I did it again.

Later, on the South Coast of Ireland, in underwear and a bra on a blustery day mid-winter, I plunged into the Irish Sea with some friends. My Irish friend who was in his 70s told me he did this as an almost daily practice.

That time, as I stood in the icy breeze with mist and damp coating my skin, I decided to try the same technique I had used in Switzerland and just relax. And I wanted it to be fun. At least I told myself I was doing this for fun.

Every Experience Is Different; Can You Relax and Be With What Is, in the Midst of It?

So, I ran, barefoot, through the foam, deeper and deeper until I plunged fully in. I felt the sensation of pain and cold on my skin and I told myself to relax. I did and it worked again. It was like I was back in the first Alpine lake as I found that the more I could relax, the more I could enjoy and find pleasure in the experience. I was able to laugh once again.

During the years I lived in Colorado, I played with the cold a little more, sometimes sitting in a cold stream deep in the mountains in what I want to call, the isolation years when the world shut down and people lived in fear. I wasn’t alone in the mountains, with the water, ever.

Eventually I found my way to Wim Hof’s book and app and tried morning cold showers. But I decided sometimes those did not suit me. Sometimes, I felt it was too much for my body. And really, what I wanted was that experience from the first lake and the sea in Ireland. It was magical, to be in nature and feel the energy and movement of my body in water that I know, was formed into crystal structures that were so much more magical than anything coming out my shower head through the municipal water system. Cold morning showers in winter in Colorado, just weren’t for me on a regular basis.

All that brings me to El Salvador, where Alex, the owner of my hotel, purchased an ice bath (a plastic tub filled with bags of ice and water, popular I imagine, due to Wim Hof). About a week ago, I saw a group of people gathered around this vinyl container, placed next to the blissfully warm pool, drinking their end-of-the-day beers. So, I went to investigate.

Trust Yourself, Trust What You Get

They were timing each other. I think two minutes in the ice water was their goal. And they kindly invited me to try it. But I noticed I just wasn’t feeling a “yes” in my body. Something was not like the lake or the ocean from the past. Maybe it was the party atmosphere and my desire for it to be sacred, or the pressure I felt to fit in more with a group of people I didn’t? I am glad I trusted myself and didn’t jump in so I could belong in some way. Like the CS Lewis article I wrote about a few weeks ago, I want to be my own inner circle. That means, I have to learn to listen to myself and trust what I get. So all of that was good practice.

A few days later, I attended a lovely all-day event at my new friend, Elieh’s house. He and his wife, Iris, have started an organic juice company here called Elixir. Elieh had an all day retreat to usher in more health-conscious food and personal practices to this amazing, unfolding country.

After the morning yoga class, led by Elieh, I glanced down to the pool below and there they were again. This time, there were two. Ice baths. The same ones I had seen at Alex’s. Also, next to them stood very beautiful young women. One of them was Miss El Salvador. If you read my post from last week, you will see the humor in that. She was showing up in my world in the most unexpected places. I knew Elieh had kept his event small on purpose. Maybe fifteen people were in the yoga class. But, despite that, there she was again. By the tubs of ice water.

So, after taking that in and deciding I wanted to learn more about her since she kept appearing, I looked at those two tubs and though to myself, “Do I want to do this?”

Trust Yourself

I wasn’t sure. I liked the group I was with. I took my time. I let other people get in and I watched. One new friend decided to do it and I could see she was suffering. I was really happy when she got out. It looked like self care and I knew that took as much courage, at least for me, as it would have to stay in. She didn’t stay because everyone else was getting to two minutes. Or three. That’s right. Here, the goal was to stay in for three minutes.

How Can I Love Myself More in This Situation?

When I saw her take care of herself, I felt more comfortable that I could do that too. I told myself if I didn’t like it or it didn’t feel right, I could get out. I reminded myself it wasn’t about impressing anyone. That never works.

What Does Your Body Tell You?

Then I checked my inner compass, which for me means I put my hands out in front of me and imagined I was holding an option in each hand. One option was: go in. The other was: skip it.

For me, what happens with my inner compass is that I feel a strong pull of energy towards one of my hands. In this case, it was the “go in” that was a “Hell Yes!” I have learned that if my inner compass is uncertain and I don’t get a “Hell Yes!” it is best to skip it.

So, with the encouragement of Rodrigo, the kind and fit young man overseeing and directing this part of the event, another young man poured a little fresh ice into my soon-to-be tub, as I cringed, and added some more water. Then, Rodrigo explained how important it was to relax.

It Is Important to Relax. Exhale slowly.

“Breathe in through your nose and exhale slowly out your mouth to help you relax.”

Alejandra Guajardo, Miss El Salvador, staying relaxed during her second dip of the day in an ice bath

He said that it is also helpful to sit in the water, like you would sit on the grass. It was not helpful to get in and crouch down in a squat, in a jump-out-fast ready-position. You want to sit so you can “reeelaaaaxxx”.

I didn’t want to think about it anymore. I got in quickly and sat as best I could. An iceberg lodged between my legs and I wondered if I should try to move it. But my hands were out, resting on the edge of the vinyl tub and the rest of me was was very, very cold and uncomfortable. I was not going to move anything, including putting my hands in. Something felt more safe and secure to have them holding onto the edge.

I admit, this was a bit of a get-out-quick ready-position.

You Don’t Have to Be Perfect

Then I grasped the hand of my technique. I slowed my breathing. I felt the pain of the cold and despite it, with it, I relaxed. I closed my eyes. I relaxed more. I checked on the iceberg I was worried about between my legs and wiggled just a tiny bit and it seemed to shift away and press against my skin a little less.

Elieh is a business man. He and his wife, Iris, own a yoga studio in Florida, this new company here in El Salvador, and rent out the beautiful house we were at through Air B&B when they aren’t using it.

They were launching a new company and they knew how to do it.

So also in attendance were two photographers with multiple cameras and a drone, taking lots and lots of pictures. I could hear the camera clicking a few feet from my face and I did my best to relax. I could hear the drone overhead.

Allow What Is; Relax

And I allowed that too.

“Just relax,” I told myself.

“See how much you can relax.”

“Breathe out through your mouth slowly, relax.”

The sensations on my skin shifted and I started to feel more and more relaxed. More than relaxed. I started to feel I was in a different energetic place, in an altered state. I felt good. It was an edge and I was enjoying it. I was surprised to feel the inside of my body heating up. I was actually feeling warm in this?!

Let Yourself Experiment; Test the Waters a Bit

I thought of putting my hands in the water, but I didn’t. I thought of it a few times again. Since the image was poking at me, I listened and decided to try it, to see what would happen. I figured it would be a learning experience.

Relax, and Don’t Simply Suffer; Trust Yourself

Immediately, there was pain. The rest of my body had adjusted and my hands were at the starting gate. The rest of my body was in some kind of bliss and my hands would have to go through a process to reach that. I realized I felt it was enough. I could stay and wait for my hands and it was uncomfortable. I was done.

So, I opened my eyes and stepped out. Rodrigo was eight feet away talking to someone. Really?! I told myself he must not have been worried about me. I felt energized. I asked someone how long I had stayed in. I didn’t know if it had been three minutes. I was a little surprised Rodrigo wasn’t right there timing my progress. But someone was. I had stayed in for eight minutes. No wonder Rodrigo had wandered away, probably after three minutes.

I think I gained some street credentials for my eight minutes as someone later commented that I must meditate a lot. I don’t. But I guess I have the capability, sometimes, to relax.

Which brings me to another point about all this:

The Root Chakra

I have been thinking a lot about the root chakra lately. This is an energy center in the body located around where that iceberg tried to lodge between my legs. You have one too. This is the place that is tied to money, safety, security, power, a sense of belonging, and have a place on the earth. This is the place, in my mind, where we learn to trust and flow. To exist and not resist. I also feel it is tied to sexuality although technically, books will tell you that is the orange one, around your sacrum, right above it.

Now, I know, that is a lot to throw your way at the end of the Relax post. But I want you to know that right now, a lot of my posts have to do with this, this energy center. I am exploring how to work with it, so it feels more in flow. I am interested in this for myself for sure. And like everything, it is tied to much bigger energy fields than just me.

Right now we have a number of wars (root chakra…power, money, fear), a financial system that is shaky at best (root chakra), a lot of issues around personal safety and sovereignty around ones sexuality (and more and more controversy and confusion around that…thank you social media), and a general sense of insecurity in the world and in one’s life (tell me if I you feel I am off base on this?).

So, what I want to say here, at the end, for those of you who made it this far, is that this little thing around RELAX is really a big thing. As you and I swim in this sea of personal and collective energy, I think we are all feeling a lot. And it is not just about us. Sometimes, you can be in a field of energy that is massive and tied to collective patterns in the world (like ancestral trauma, war, big things like that) and it might not feel good.

What I am experimenting with is to just relax.

Is that easy?

Well, maybe sometimes.

And sometimes it is like getting into an ice bath.

You do not have to start taking ice baths to practice how to relax like this. You do not have to feel that you have to follow the map of the story I painted above at all. I am sure you have lots and lots of opportunities to practice, “just relax.” The thing is that sure, you can do a cold plunge or take an ice bath. You can meditate in whatever way works for you, or walk in nature and breathe, or love yourself in whatever way brings you ease and care.

Sometimes, when you just relax, you will still feel that dense field around you, that heaviness. And that doesn’t mean you are doing something wrong. Sometimes it just takes time.

Just relax as best you can and feel. Feel more without resisting it.

Can I feel it without becoming it?

Sometimes there is pain, or tension in my body. Or in the energy field around me and I sense that and get tension in my body. Can I feel it, bring care to it, and relax? If I can do that, I am bigger than the thing that is hard to be with. There is more space for it.

That first girl who got out of the ice bath was taking care of herself. She got in and she felt the pain and she resisted it. That is normal. That is taking your hand off the hot stove. The instinct is there for a reason.

And sometimes, you are in a sea of energy that is challenging. You can’t take your hand off the hot stove. Something has to transform. So the best you can do is “just relax.” Maybe remember to ask yourself, “how can I love myself more in this situation?” Maybe see if you can feel what is, without trying to push it away…which only creates resistance and more pain.

Maybe, once in a while, you and I can remember to “just relax” and from there, from that place of being centered, things can change as can our experience of them. If we are patient. If we allow them to and don’t force the process.

Just Relax.

They are warrior words. Don’t forget that.

And like anything, I feel we are holding hands in this and I am writing about becoming. I am writing about a process. I will change what I say. I will test things out. Just like you. Trust your inner compass.

Don’t suffer through things when it is better to leave. Don’t put your hand on a hot stove (aka a dysfunctional situation) and tell yourself you are spiritual if you stay and “just relax.” Sometimes, the move is to leave. But there are times, “just relax” helps. Just like it helps to say “no” to things that don’t feel right. The two go together really well, actually. “No,” to the first ice bath, “yes,” to the second. “No,” to meeting someone for dinner, and “yes,” to something else. “No,” to judging myself and “yes’” to finding some compassion for what just happened. Like that.

My prayer is for us all to do this and trust ourselves, as in the end, that inner compass is a beam of light from heaven, just like those sunbeams in the icy water in a crystal-cold lake.

May we all, relax as best we can and get out when we need to.