After going along to join them, I still think that it’s absolutely crazy, but oddly, I get why they do it.
Just after Christmas and before New Year’s Day when everyone gets involved in a Loony Dook to bring in the year, I headed along to Aberdour’s Silver Sands to join the Mental Health Swims group on their mid-day dip.
I had been before mind you, back at university I headed along to chat with mental health dippers at Portobello Beach but I had never been in the middle of winter. It wasn’t something I was looking forward to experiencing.
It’s also quite intimidating heading along to meet up with a group of people that you’ve never met, let alone meeting up with them to do something that at the time I thought would have been the equivalent of torture.
So I dragged myself out of my warm bed and my cosy flat on a grey-looking Saturday and met up with Elaine McCall and her group of sea swimmers.
Elaine had very kindly offered to bring me a wet suit, which I eagerly accepted because I was certain I would end up with hypothermia. In hindsight, bit dramatic.
To my surprise though, the worst part of the whole experience was trying to get changed into the wetsuit.
Elaine also let me borrow a set of socks to wear in the water, the wetsuit kind, not your standard pair from Primark.
So there I was, struggling into this wetsuit on a very lovely beach on a very cold day, dreading the worst.
Thankfully, everyone in the group was so lovely and only laughed a little when I fell over! They were all really enthusiastic and reassuring too, telling me that the water wouldn’t even be that cold.
I thought: “It’s so nice of them to lie to me to try and make me feel better.”
Then, much too soon, everyone started to head to the water. I remembered from my first-ever attempt at sea swimming that the best way to go about it, for me anyway, was to not think about it and walk at a steady pace into the water while making sure I was taking even breaths.
When you’re entering really cold water like that, it’s actually easy to forget to breathe, believe it or not.
The wetsuit was great, could hardly feel the cold water. I felt like I hacked the system, right up until the water started to slowly seep through said wetsuit. It was almost worse than going right in without one – the false sense of security was heartbreaking.
Even then though, the water was cold but it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be.
Again everyone was so nice and welcoming, talking to me while in the water and making sure the newbies were all doing okay.
After five minutes exactly, Elaine’s husband called time and all the first time dippers were told to get out of the water while the more experienced and regular members of the group were able to stay in a little longer.
Later, after I could feel my face again, I was told that five minutes was enough time for people to gain the mental health benefits of wild swimming but not long enough for our core temperatures to drop and for us to get mildly hypothermic without noticing.
And if I thought getting into the wetsuit was bad, getting out of it was a nightmare. Sand, everywhere.
Afterwards, I wasn’t sure what everyone would get up to but the group all got dried off and changed. Everyone was chatting together and I got the chance to hear a few people’s experiences.
One lady was there for the first time ever and was so elated that she had actually got in the water. It was lovely to hear how proud of herself she was and how glad she was to have come along with the Mental Health Swims group.
She talked about how at ease Elaine and her husband made her feel, she felt completely safe going into it knowing that Elaine was experienced and had first aid training for it.
Other members go regularly and were passing out wee treats to each other. I think there was a chocolate log on offer and some tablet too, a nice reward after a cold plunge.
While some people go along for their mental health, these ladies are here for the social aspect and shared stories about the times they’ve sat for hours on the beach together after a swim.
As everyone began to pack up and head home, a lot of the group asked me if I was coming back in the future for another dip. It was really welcoming and I can see why this is such a good group for beginners – they really make you feel like one of them right from the first meet.
Speaking to Elaine, she told me that lots of people come along each week, those who attend regularly, people who come and dip their toe in every once in a while, people who have never done it before and people of all age groups.
And she wants it to keep growing, Elaine hopes to set up a borrow box with wetsuits, gloves and socks, so even more people can come along and give it a try without committing to buying equipment.
She’s got the support of local Councillors, Sarah Neal and David Barratt, to help her secure funding for this and I truly hope she is able to get it. Sea swimming helps so many people and it would be great to make it more accessible.
For those out there who still think it’s crazy to go for a sea swim in the middle of winter, me too. But, give it a go. It’s so good for people with lots of different conditions, it would be great for people looking to get out and try something new and exciting, and for those of you out there that may be struggling with overthinking or racing thoughts – it’s definitely for you.
Believe me, it’s so cold you can’t think about anything else!
For more information or to join the Mental Health Swims group at Aberdour, visit their Facebook page.