The first time was a bit like being electrocuted. A full-body jolt. Like nothing I’d ever experienced. But then, when I fought my brain and body to relax, that’s when it happened. A stillness. A freezing oblivion. All I could think was, “Just. Keep. Breathing”. I made myself relax into the discomfort and let the cold water go to work. I liked it. The rush of warmth to every part of me when I emerged was incredible. A calm energy radiated from deep inside. Feelings of frustration and anxiety left behind in the water. It was then I understood the power of the cold.

For so many, 2020 was devastating. For me, it brought a heaviness. Never feeling good enough. Never settled. Lost. A crippling perfectionism. I couldn’t even define what I was looking for. Life was just passing me by. And when I admitted it, all I felt was shame. This was when my experimentation with cold water therapy truly began. My fascination with the Wim Hof method had been bubbling away and only grew stronger after going on one of his experiences in Poland. I knew what I’d felt out there could help me once again.

So, I converted our chest freezer into an ice bath. Was it safe? No. Was it full of practical problems? Yes. Did it help me? Absolutely. I felt like a different person to the one that climbed in only a couple of minutes before. I’d jump in whenever I wasn’t feeling great and needed help. I began to think, how many other people could benefit from having a safe way of accessing ice cold water? If I lived near a natural body of water, I’d jump right in. But most people don’t, and neither do I. But, I couldn’t find the ice bath I wanted to buy. That’s when the idea for Brass Monkey was born