by Olivia Stephenson, a staff nurse in the first year after qualification working on an acute stroke ward in Bristol.

Over the past year the nursing staff on my ward cared for a large number of COVID-positive patients, sadly losing too many of them. The shockwaves of the virus were felt by staff as many colleagues became unwell, isolated or struggled financially. Of course, their families and loved ones were often badly affected too, as personal relationships and support networks were seriously put to the test.

Stress hits home

I personally felt those shockwaves knock me down to rock bottom in the summer of 2020. The stress and anxiety caused me to suffer a mental health crisis, even including starting to lose my hair. During a search for anything to aid my recovery, a friend suggested the idea of ‘outdoor cold water swimming’.

Although it seemed a slightly eccentric idea, it was summer, the weather was warm and I thought “why not?”. So, I put on my wetsuit and wandered down to the local marine pool. As I began to climb down the steps, making high pitched “whoohoo.. ah.. ooh!” noises and trying to catch my breath, I felt the water seep down the neck of my wetsuit, and I laughed for the first time in a long time. And I began to swim, my body mimicking the numb state that my mind had been in for months.

This was the first time I had not thought about the year’s stresses, in fact all I could think about was the cold water against my skin. I found the more often I swam, the better I felt. The realisation dawned on me that I needed to keep it up over the winter!

Taking the plunge

My cold water swimming challenge for Cavell Nurses’ Trust was born. To stay motivated, and in the hope that anybody else going through what I did would have access adequate practical and emotional support, I committed. I signed up to complete a minimum of 12 outdoor swims between the beginning of November and the end of February, with at least one swim each month. All in aid of Cavell Nurses’ Trust, the charity providing support to nursing and midwifery colleagues facing a personal or financial crisis.

In November the water was a balmy 10 degrees Celsius and sporting my bobble hat and wetsuit I managed a respectable 4 lengths (1km) of the marine pool, before climbing out to defrost my hands. It’s a common phenomenon with outdoor swimming to experience ‘after-drop’. This refers to the continual drop in core body temperature for up to 15 minutes after you’ve left the water. Hence it is very important to get out of the water when you are still feeling good, before you have already started to feel excessively cold.

Adapting and learning

Keeping a record allowed me to track the temperature and duration of my swims. At the end of November, I had already ticked off the required 12 swims, but not the monthly target. I had discovered a few small hacks to make my swimming challenge more manageable. These included bringing a bathroom mat to stand on when changing, investing in a big changing coat and realizing that in my wetsuit, although I was cold, I wasn’t nearly as crazy as those individuals I would watch enter the water in nothing but a swimming costume! However, as December rolled around, I was soon to retract that last statement.

The big chill!

The water temperature in December fell to 4 degrees, and the air temperature was often even lower.  On Christmas Eve, when I pulled my wetsuit from the outdoor washing line, where it was supposed to have been drip-drying, I realised with a drop in my stomach… that it had frozen stiff! By this point I had already committed to going for a swim, so I had no choice but to go in ‘skins’ – this is what outdoor swimmers call wearing just a swimsuit!.

As I once again climbed down the marine pool steps into the icy cold water, this time with my legs and arms completely bare, I felt an almost electric stinging to my exposed flesh. Fellow swimmers shouted “Don’t stop! keep going!” as they saw me hesitating and trying to catch my breath at a waist deep height. It was at this point, shivering and questioning my sanity, that I thought of my fellow Nurses and Midwives, especially those in crisis, and the promise I had made to complete these swims for the charity that does so much to support them. I took a last breath … and plunged in.

Building resilience

As January came and went, I stayed in ‘skins’ and managed some of the coldest of all my swims at 1.5 degrees water temperature. These dips qualified as serious ‘ice swims’. Ice swims are officially classified as being in water temperature below 5 degrees and wearing only a standard swimming costume (or less!). It was fair to say the duration of these swims was dramatically reduced, often to barely a few 100 meters as oppose to the original 4 lengths I started with at the beginning of November. However, it is generally advised to stay in the water no longer than 1 minute per degree, so the shorter swims were not only inevitable, but also safer.

February was my last month of swims, giving me the opportunity to look back over the magnificent amount of money (more than £900!) and awareness I had raised. It also allowed me to reflect on what this remarkable fundraising challenge had taught me. The conclusion I came to was this: You have the ability to take control of your mind and body, even when both are screaming at you to not climb into the ice-cold water. Once you have taken the plunge and unlocked the reality of what you are brave enough to achieve, you really can start to take control of the other stresses and challenging emotions in your life.

Find your challenge

Now the challenge for Cavell Nurses’ Trust is over, I can confidently sit back and say “Yes, I am probably a little bit mad”. However, the madness is spreading and the cold-water swimming phenomenon is being more and more recognised for its therapeutic effect in treating depression, helping circulation problems and boosting the immune system. I would urge anyone who has considered outdoor swimming to just give it a go. And most importantly to push yourself to achieve goals with the motivation of raising money for this incredible charity. I certainly would not have completed my swims without knowing each frozen finger was helping raise a hand in the air to recognise and support nurses and midwives in crisis.

Get in touch with Cavell Nurses’ Trust today