Pretty chilly in Houston
So, the ‘crazy because I’m totally desperate’ treatments begin. Bring it all on – I’ll do anything!
I have been trying whole body cryotherapy. The theory behind the whole body cryotherapy is that your body basically thinks it’s dying so the flight, freeze (ha ha) or fight response kicks in. So the blood vessels vasoconstrict (become narrower in diameter) to save the blood for your major organs which can help your body to repair damage. Effectively like having an ice bath after an intense workout but colder, much colder! In Lyme the bugs have antigens which cause the release of cytokines that cause inflammation within the body. Some of the leading experts think that the cryotherapy stops the excess cytokines and this could be a way of getting your own immune system to put the Lyme in its place without the use of nasty antibiotics or herbs.
You basically stand in a freezer for up to three minutes in nothing but thermal gloves, socks and slippers. I was very ‘British’ and was shocked that I could not wear a bikini and was checking the place out for cameras. I should have been slightly more concerned about being made into an ice cube. I know this is fairly obvious but IT IS COLD!
I managed it and my skin temperature got to 10.5 degrees Celsius (normal should be around 33). Apparently singing ‘ice ice baby’ is fairy common and I wasn’t too original. I did feel a tad smug, when the next time I went I could hear the guys who went in after me squealing like little girls.
Has it worked? I don’t know but it makes me high as a kite because of the rise in endorphins. So much so that when I went into the much needed sauna after I was singing ‘Your Hot and You’re Cold’ by Katy Perry and left the building telling everyone I loved them. Including some random man in the waiting room who looked fairly amused if not a little scared. ‘High’ may not be ‘healed’ but it’s far better than most of the side effects I get from therapies that’s for sure. I LOVE YOU!
