A recent case study reported in the British Medical Journal and subsequently made into an episode of the BBC documentary series, “The Doctor Who Gave Up Drugs,” describes how a 24-year-old mother eliminated her medications for major depressive disorder and anxiety over a period of four months as she began a program of weekly swimming in cold water. But could cold water swimming really help treat depression?
Cold Water Beginnings
The young mother, Sarah, had been on medication for seven years and felt that it put her in a chemical fog, which she wanted to eliminate for both her child’s benefit and for her own. Sarah approached Dr. Chris van Tulleken to develop a plan to get rid of her symptoms and the medications she took to manage her depression. Dr. van Tulleken is a cold-water swimmer himself and carefully began reducing Sarah’s medication while introducing her to swims in water of approximately 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
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