Resilience and Positive Stress Microdosing
Humans adapt very easily, to anything. The ability to adapt is part of our survival strategy. This principle of adaptability of the organism in response to external factors and stressors is called hormesis or hormetic effect. I use this term over and over again. Let’s see what it really means and why you should remember it.
Generally speaking, we can divide stress in two categories:
- Distress - negative, harmful stress
- Eustress - positive, beneficial stress
Distress
Distress is a negative sort of stress that we accumulate in our everyday lives. It is characterised by low intensity which, when it is not counterbalanced by positive stress, can result in chronic stress and a wide range of harmful physiological and mental processes. Chronic stress leads to increased inflammation which contributes to the deterioration of both mental and physical health. Nowadays, this stress is caused by numerous uncertainties, mistrust of our government, lack of self-confidence, uncertainty in relationships and at work. It can include the stress and pressure at work or school, fear of not managing to finish a project in time. Apprehension about the future, not knowing what will happen. Fear of losing my job or my loved ones.
These fears manifest themselves in the form of thoughts that come to our mind during the day. If you identify yourself with these thoughts, they become emotions. If you identify with these, too, they are stored in your body, your muscles and nervous system, which then starts to project its own reality based on these inputs. At the same time, this kind of stress can be produced by overtraining. It can happen in cold therapy, too, if cold is not administered in doses. You can get to a point where cold causes you negative stress.
Mind the doses
I have lots of personal experience with this state. There was a time when my longtime friend and colleague, Libor Mattuš, and I trained a lot. We organised winter expeditions to Sněžka, our highest mountain, we dived in ice cold lakes and rivers and many other things. After several weeks of such intensive training without a break, my nervous system started crying for help. I suffered from anxiety and panic attacks. So much so that my husband Johnny and I had to leave for home early from one such group expedition because I had a panic attack. My nervous system was completely overloaded.
Even though this state was the result of extreme cold exposure training, I knew I needed to go to the lake to cool down for a few seconds. Approach the practice from a different point, not from a place of strength as I had done - I had to relax. My husband tried to talk me out of it, but then he gave me his trust and was there for me at the lake. It helped. Incredibly so. Just a few seconds were enough, just accepting the discomfort without fighting or forcing myself, only letting go. After that I burst into tears and then pampered myself in warmth for several weeks or even months. I do not wish this experience on anyone, but I share it with you for one simple reason. Your intention, your mindset matters a great deal when working with cold. If you approach it forcibly, you violate yourself and the cold. You can never win with such a strategy. If you manage to relax in the discomfort of cold, however, accept it, accept the pain that cold can cause in the beginning, you can transcend the pain, go beyond the limits of your mind that is describing it with thoughts, and then joy, even euphoria ensues.
Eustress
Eustress, on the other hand, positive stress is caused for example by sauna, breathing techniques, fitness training and exercise in general, cold showers or intermittent fasting. All of these produce beneficial stress. Up to a certain point it can also be a deadline which motivates us to finish a task without paralysing us. We can feel these benefits in our body and it is invigorating. The difference between medicine and poison is in the dose, and it is crucial to learn to recognise the fine line.
So what happens if there is too much stress? On a psychological level, it can lead to various mental disorders including depression, even death in extreme cases. Our nervous system can become overloaded, even with something seemingly so banal as disputes at home or work pressure. The same is true on the physical level. If you spend the whole day at the sauna, it will in no way be positive, and you will produce negative stress in your body. If, however, you do three twenty-minute rounds with breaks between the rounds (varying individually), you provide your body with a positive stressor. You are stepping out of your comfort zone, but not so far as to harm yourself. The same goes for cold therapy.
Sustainability first and foremost
If you are new to cold therapy, be careful not to overdo it, don’t cross the line. You can start lightly, for example, just by immersing only your hands and feet in cold water. In time, you can add other forms of cold exposure. Regularity and sustainability are crucial. If you jump into an ice cold lake right away, forcing yourself to boot, cold is unlikely to stay in your life for long. And if it does, you can harm yourself quite a bit. I know from personal experience, however, that identifying this fine line is a real challenge for many people. The longer you walk the cold path, the more likely you are to find your very centre.
When facing cold, our body does its best to make its nervous system stronger and more resilient, but also to ensure survival, now and in the future. From an evolutionary point of view it is natural for our body to feel wary of cold. Just as it can cause us positive stress, it can also kill us. The trick is cold microdosing, on a regular basis. This way our nervous system gains resilience gradually and we grow stronger.
