by Carolyn Thomas ♥ @HeartSisters
Consider this timely question, answered last month in Harvard Medical School’s publication Healthbeat by Dr. Massimo Ferrigno. His response may be useful for those of you who don’t mind putting your face in the water (I’m not one of them, alas, due to some traumatic childhood memories of the diving board at Mrs. Frydendahl’s backyard pool).
Q: “I spend part of every year on the coast of Maine. One of the things I love to do there is swim in the ocean for 20 or 30 minutes. The water is cold (55° F) but I don’t mind. I’m almost 80. I had my mitral valve repaired five years ago, and my heart rate is sometimes irregular. Are my cold-water swims okay for my heart?” Continue reading “Is cold-water swimming safe for my heart?”
Before my heart attack, I was a champion ruminator. Give me an ugly little problem to worry about, and I’d thrash it to death before finally flinging it aside in a fit of exhaustion, usually after some sleepless nights, a few extra grey hairs, and incalculable damage to my poor coronary arteries.
Heart Sisters 