Anyone Tried Cold Water Therapy For Depression

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I watched a programme on tv the other day about a Dr who is trying to treat patients without drugs. For depression he suggested cold water therapy ( e.g. open water swimming ). Has anyone tried this? Did it help?

I've heard of using hobbies or new skills, like swimming, to make you happier. I've never heard of cold water therapy though. I happen to enjoy swimming, for what it's worth. The freedom and buoyancy of the water feels good.

Cold showers, I've tried them before. Yeah they wake you up and give you a temporary burst in mood but they are horrible. They make my anxiety go through the roof and they make my body tense up making all my chronic pain a million times worse. The shock of a cold shower everyday is worse than the side effects of drugs IMO. If I didn't want to use drugs I would way rather use exercise as it is enjoyable.

in my experience, cold showers can work wonders, but it depends on your current physical and metabolic state. if you're in a lethargic state, then it's probably not going to help (and if it feels painful, then that's not a good sign). but if you're in an agitated state (which is the kind of mood disturbance i usually have. i guess it's like a milder version of bipolar mixed episodes), then it might help, especially against insomnia, because it wakes you up and calms you down at the same time. and at least to me a cold shower actually feels great after vigorous exercise

I had cold baths (cannot have showers due to sensory issues) for three months as I had no hot water in the house. They certainly woke me up. Although I have a diminished ability to feel the cold and an excess ability to feel the heat, so the cold baths were welcoming in the summer.

Thanks for your answers , it's definately an an avenue of treatment I'm considering ( that is if I can motivate myself to leave the house for something other than food or the doctors )