When you’re taking a bath or shower and cold water comes out of the faucet, what do you usually do? Quickly hop out until the water warms up, right? While most of us probably take warm baths or showers as part of our routines, cold water submersion actually has its merits, too. In fact, when it comes to addiction recovery care, cold plunge therapy as part of a holistic addiction treatment approach can be an important tool in helping you achieve long-term healing and sobriety.
Understanding A Holistic Addiction Treatment Approach
Overcoming drug or alcohol addiction isn’t a quick fix. Why? Because recovery from addiction isn’t simply about addressing poor discipline or changing your behaviors. It goes much deeper.
Addiction in many ways is rooted in unresolved past trauma. As negative feelings, stress, and other effects of trauma linger, it’s easy to seek out ways to cope, such as drugs and alcohol. But eventually, as you use these substances, your brain develops a chemical dependency on the dopamine rush drugs or alcohol provides. That means you need to keep using these substances to function, and you have a total addiction on your hands.
Because of the complexities of addiction behind the scenes, inpatient or outpatient addiction treatment that just focuses on addressing your symptoms won’t work in the long run. You need a comprehensive treatment plan focused on trauma-informed care that heals you as the whole person. This means addressing the trauma and mental health challenges that drive your substance abuse, as well as your personal wellness and spirituality in the addiction recovery process. That’s why the best inpatient and outpatient substance abuse treatment centers take a holistic addiction treatment approach to your recovery. A holistic approach incorporates traditional talk therapy practices with alternative, experiential therapies designed to enhance your overall well-being, including:
- Outdoor therapy
- Art therapy
- Music therapy
- Mindfulness meditation therapy
- Breathwork therapy
- Equine therapy
- Recreational therapy, physical fitness, and nutrition
- Cold plunge therapy
Of these experiential therapies, what makes cold plunge therapy in particular stand out? How can this form of holistic addiction treatment help you achieve the recovery from addiction you deserve? Let’s dive in (no pun intended).
What is Cold Plunge Therapy?
Cold plunge baths have actually been around for centuries in Scandinavian countries. In Sweden for example, cold baths (called kallbads) are a popular pastime in the fall and winter months, shares VisitSweden.com. Bath houses designed specifically for both sauna and cold plunge have been serving Swedish communities since the Nineteenth Century. Today, the popularity of cold plunges has grown thanks to celebrity endorsements and well-known fitness advocates like Wim Hof. You may even know someone who takes cold plunge baths as part of their daily routine.
The idea of a cold plunge or cold immersion is fairly straightforward. It involves partially or totally submerging yourself in cold water for a set period of time, usually a few minutes or so. This submersion may involve a specific cold plunge tub or pool, or it may utilize a natural body of water such as a lake.
Typically, water in a cold plunge pool or tub is kept at 50 degrees Fahrenheit at the minimum, if not colder. Taking an ice bath or a dip in a frozen pond, for example, may expose you to much colder temperatures. For this reason, cold plunges usually start at 30 seconds to one minute, shares the Mayo Clinic, but you may work up to five or 10 minute sessions over time. A cold plunge may be one continuous submersion, or you could participate in multiple submersions with quick breaks in between sessions.
In the case of alcohol or drug addiction treatment and relapse prevention, cold plunge therapy focuses on cold water immersion as a way to enhance your physical and mental well-being. Typically done in short spurts, these cold plunges utilize your body’s natural response to cold temperatures. As a result, you can re-establish the mind-body connection that addiction so often diminishes.
Are Cold Plunges Safe?
If you’ve ever felt the “shock” of jumping into cold water, it’s fair to wonder about the safety of cold plunging. However, taking a cold plunge is generally safe for most people, especially when done under professional therapeutic supervision. With that said, it’s not necessarily for everyone. If you’re pregnant or have a heart condition, circulation issues, or other chronic health challenges, it’s best to talk to a licensed medical professional beforehand.
Why Cold Plunge? The Benefits of Cold Plunge Therapy, Explained
When you’re in addiction recovery care, what makes the simple act of submerging yourself in cold water so impactful on your sobriety? There are in fact a number of cold plunge benefits that can provide significant help to your recovery journey, including:
1. Rebalances Your Autonomic Nervous System
One of the many negative effects of addiction on your body is that it undermines your autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for involuntary bodily functions such as digestion and heart rate. When a substance use disorder takes hold, this system gets unbalanced as you become reliant on your addiction to function. However, cold plunge therapy helps activate your parasympathetic nervous system, which helps your body rest and relax. Over time, this alleviates the “fight or flight” response your body undergoes during withdrawal symptoms, bringing balance back into your autonomic nervous system.
2. Reduces Inflammation
Because addiction takes its toll on your body physically, it can lead to a number of problems, including inflammation and other chronic conditions. However, one of the key benefits of a cold plunge is its ability to reduce inflammation as a result of temporarily constricting blood flow. With a reduction of inflammation comes a reduction in pain, as well as a new deposit of oxygen-rich blood once the cold plunge subsides to promote further healing. Cold plunging can also help reduce inflammation in your brain, which helps stave off or alleviate depression symptoms. This boost in physical health helps you better navigate the rigors of substance detox and recovery from addiction.
3. Improves Your Mental Well-Being and Mood
When you’re struggling with addiction, your brain becomes dependent on substances to generate dopamine and feel pleasure. But cold plunge therapy naturally stimulates dopamine release, helping to restore your brain’s reward system and your ability to experience joy and pleasure from healthy activities. With dopamine production occurring naturally, your mood improves (which helps you better adjust to the highs and lows of getting sober), and you’re more able to focus your attention on what’s required of you during your recovery journey.
4. Alleviates Anxiety and Stress
Living with an addiction makes it easy for your mind to be consumed by anxious, stressful thoughts and feelings. Submerging yourself in a cold plunge tub, however, really helps provide a temporary break and healthy stress relief from these overwhelming emotions so your mood can stabilize. At the same time, cold plunging can actually reduce your stress and anxiety. As you engage in cold plunge sessions over time, your body’s stress response diminishes, giving you greater control over it moving forward. This helps you stay the course when anxiety triggers arise in the future.
5. Boosts Circulation, Metabolism, and Immunity
There are actually a number of physical health benefits of cold plunge that aid your addiction recovery journey. Cold plunging can speed up your metabolism, which can help you lose weight (which is sometimes needed due to a lack of physical activity associated with addiction). It can also improve your circulation, which helps flush any remaining toxins from substance abuse from your body. Your body’s white blood cell counts subsequently improve, helping you fend off sickness and boost your immune system. This is especially important as your body is typically not in a healthy physical state when you start addiction treatment. With a stronger body as a result of cold immersion, you’re more physically equipped to get sober.
6. Builds Resilience
Breaking free from an addiction can be quite the mental challenge. To truly get and stay sober, you need to learn how to navigate hard situations and uncomfortable feelings. Cold plunge therapy trains you to do just that. As you’re submerged in cold water, you’re learning how to build resilience as you process and respond to discomfort. This gives you greater control over the impulsivities that previously drove you toward substance abuse. That means you can manage any future cravings and learn healthier ways to cope with potential addiction triggers down the road—preventing relapse as well.
Experience Cold Plunge Therapy (and Recovery) at Defining Wellness
When it comes to recovery from addiction, cold plunge therapy can be a highly beneficial aspect of whole-person treatment. That’s why we utilize it as part of our holistic addiction treatment program at Defining Wellness Centers in Mississippi.
We understand that recovery isn’t just about getting sober; it’s also about embracing a new, healthier way of life free from the lingering effects of past trauma. Knowing this, we incorporate trauma-informed care into a personalized treatment plan that utilizes both experiential and evidence-based therapy practices designed to address your addiction’s root causes. If you’re ready to break free from addiction and achieve your long-term recovery goals, call us today.
