Reconnecting with the ocean

I had my first cold water swimming experience with my mum on Sunday.

What can I say? Well I checked…I still have all my toes.

Pardon me if all this all sounds a bit deep and meaningful, but I truly believe to have a real care for the ocean we must first have a connection with it.

I don’t even necessarily believe that this must be a physical connection…this can be through reading or watching documentaries. Just taking an interest. If you want to watch Finding Nemo and call it a day, go for it.

The ocean is such an integral part of this world. It produces half of the air you’re breathing right now as you scroll. Need I say more?

Sometimes I feel this is the reason why many people haven’t taken an interest in using less plastic. If you never use, see or feel the ocean then why care about it. But we must.

Luckily, I live a short drive from the coast and do most of my walking around there. However, I can’t remember the last time I swam in the sea in this country. Especially during the winter months.

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Take my breath away

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I’m going to admit I went into my first cold water swim very overconfident. It’s just the ocean, right? How bad can it be? Because my mum was so nervous it made me want to be brave for both of us.

Literally within seconds I found I couldn’t catch my breath; I couldn’t stop myself gasping for air.

‘Remember take deep breaths…deeeep breaths’, my mum kept saying and she wasn’t wrong.

After the initial shock of the cold water, we soon settled into a pattern of breathing and kept our bodies moving. It felt amazing. Amazing that we’d done it. Here we were after weeks of talking about it, ordering all sorts…we were in there, literally like swimwear.

I’m sure as cold-water swimming continues to grow in popularity you’ve all heard the endless benefits to our mental health, circulation, the immune system and much more.

All I can say is I had the best cup of tea after that swim and it felt great to be back in the big blue.

Why not give it a try?

We’re off for our second dip on Sunday morning, wish us luck!

Lauren x

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