Cryotherapy Benefits Before and After - What Changes to Expect

Cryotherapy Benefits: Before and After Effects

From award-winning athletes to everyday wellness seekers, more and more people are stepping into the chilly realms of cryotherapy. Exposing your body to sudden and extreme cold shock triggers widespread physiological reactions known to promote healing and reduce pain and inflammation. While cryotherapy is often utilized as a complement to existing medical and therapeutic modalities, advocates also tout growing evidence supporting cold treatment as a powerful stand-alone therapy.

What is Cryotherapy?

Also known as whole body cryotherapy, cryo treatment represents a form of outpatient cold therapy where the body is exposed to ultra-low temperatures for a short duration. Most whole body cryotherapy chambers reach -250 to -300 degrees Fahrenheit.

Patients stand inside the chamber for 2 to 4 minutes wearing minimal protective clothing. Only your head and hands remain outside. The extreme cold triggers complex cascading reactions that continue even after warming up, delivering enhanced circulation, immunity boosts and overall wellness benefits.

Before Your Cryotherapy Session

Cryotherapy newcomers usually feel some nervous anticipation heading into that initial deep freeze dive. But facilities typically provide detailed pre-session instructions so you know what to wear, what to avoid, when to eat and how to position your body for maximum safety and effectiveness. Heres what to expect:

• Brief Health Screening Youll review your medical history to uncover any precautions or contraindications. Those younger than 18 years old usually require signed consent from a parent or guardian before undergoing whole body cryotherapy due to safety concerns.
• Protective Foot & Head Wear Cryotherapy centers will provide special socks, gloves and headgear to minimize risk of direct skin or tissue damage in the subarctic chamber.
• Loose Fitting Undergarments Youll wear your own underwear or bathing suit bottoms to allow your body maximum exposure to circulating chilled air while preserving modesty.
• Towels & Robe After exiting the cryo chamber, youll want to quickly towel off and wrap up in a comfy robe or blankets while skin rewarms.

Following staff member instructions for proper foot spacing, hand position and body alignment inside the unit optimizes surface area contact for whole body exposure to ultra-low temperatures.

During Your Cryotherapy Session

Stepping into the cryotherapy room feels surreal as plumes of icy vapor swirl inviting you into the futuristic chamber. Shivering begins almost immediately once the cold hits your skin triggering the innate mammalian cold exposure reaction.

While standing inside the subzero domains, you can expect:

• Shivering and shaking as your body works to warm itself
• A prickling, stinging sensation like being out in the harshest winter wind imaginable
• Muscle tensing and tightness throughout the body
• A moment of adjustment to the extreme cold lasting about 30 seconds
• Possible slight lightheadedness as circulation and blood pressure drop

While the bone-chilling cold may feel nearly unbearable those first 30 seconds, your skin will soon start to go numb due to reduced circulation. You may also enter into a deeply relaxed, meditative state from fluctuations in neurotransmitters like endorphins.

Sessions typically last 2 minutes for beginners before gradually extending to 3 or 4 minute durations. The attendant remains in constant visual and verbal contact from outside ready to respond at any moment if problems emerge.

Immediately After Cryotherapy

Emerging from the cryotherapy chamber leaves you awash in childlike wonder and a curious sense of invincibility. The extreme cold exposure experiments with our innate human survival capabilities evoking a mix of relief, pride and exhilaration all at once.

You can expect:

• Flushed skin coloring as blood rapidly circulates into extremities
• A strong shivering response lasting 5 to 10 minutes post-session
• A burst of cold-induced energy and mental clarity lasting up to an hour post-treatment
• Lightheadedness immediately after exiting the chamber

The attendant will guide you through a brief walking or marching type movement to assist muscular recovery. You'll likely crave wrapping yourself in blankets and warm clothing to stop those post-cryo chills.

Later After Effects and Changes From Cryotherapy

While a marked glow and boost tend to emerge in the short term after cryotherapy, most devotees seek treatment for the cumulative long term regenerative advantages cold immersion confers:

• Reduced Inflammation The deep chill works systemically to lower harmful inflammation associated with injury, overtraining, arthritis, eczema, fibromyalgia and host of chronic diseases.
• Decreased Pain Both immediate and longer lasting natural pain relief results as the cold suppresses nerve sensations while lowering circulatory prostaglandins.
• Faster Injury Healing Improved circulation removes waste byproducts while delivering oxygen, nutrients and anti-inflammatory cells to speed regenerating damaged muscles, joints and tissues.
• Enhanced Immunity Brief repeated exposures to extreme cold markedly boost levels disease-fighting white blood cells, antibodies and antiviral proteins.

The cumulative effects from consistent whole body cryotherapy, such as 2 to 3 sessions per week, deliver measurable improvements including less pain, drug dependency, fatigue, mood disorders and enhanced athletic performance.

Additional Cryo Cold Therapy Options

Beyond full-body cryotherapy chambers where everything but your head and hands sit enclosed behind icy glass doors, practitioners implement several other methods of cold application.

Additional cryotherapy modalities include:

• Localized nitrogen spray Handheld devices direct a focused point of refrigerant liquid nitrogen vapors targeting isolated injury sites.
• Cryotherapy facials These specialized facial treatments aim to improve skin texture, elasticity and activate cell renewal by alternating gentle cold therapy application with Guasha lymphatic massage techniques.
• Cryosurgery Dermatologists and aestheticians freeze unwanted skin tags, warts or precancerous cells through direct contact with liquid nitrogen or nitrous oxide gas.
• Cold packs While not delivering the systemic advantages of clinical cryotherapy, athletes regularly utilize cold packs, ice baths and compression to reduce sports related soreness and swelling.

Ideal Candidates for Cryotherapy

Given the stress whole body cryotherapy places on your system navigating acute temperature shocks from extreme cold exposure, checking in with your physician helps determine if sessions would be safe or beneficial.

Best candidates for cryo treatment include:

• Generally healthy adults under age 70 looking to support wellness
• Athletes seeking faster workout recovery and less downtime from sports injuries
• Those with chronic inflammatory conditions causing nagging pain
• Individuals with skin disorders responsive to cold stimulation like eczema or psoriasis

Whole body cryotherapy remains relatively contraindicated for children, adolescents, pregnant women, those with severe anemia, frostbite risk and certain heart conditions involving blood pressure instability.

Cryo Precautions and Potential Side Effects

While research continues demonstrating cryotherapy as a relatively safe modality when administered properly, the extreme cold therapy does come with cautions.

Monitor for adverse reactions and promptly report concerning symptoms including:

• Lingering pain, itching, blistering or scabbing of the skin
• Lightheadedness, racing heart rate or shortness of breath during or after sessions
• Panic, anxiety, PTSD triggers or amplified emotional distress
• Aggravated injury pain or joint stiffness following treatment

Additional less common side effects like paradoxical skin burning, low blood pressure, frostnip, disturbance of menstrual cycle rhythm or sleep pattern disrupt

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare professional before starting any new treatment regimen.