Hi, I'm Marianne and I spend a lot of my life in water because I am a swim coach (in a pool and in open water), but I also use cold water therapy to manage discomfort from a musculoskeletal knee condition I was born with. However, I have also discovered how a quick cold dip in my garden spa, in conjunction with a calming breathing exercise is a brilliant de-stresser, if you don't have time for a full contrast therapy session.

In the last five years, I started using saunas in combination with cold water immersion more, as they are popping up everywhere in the UK, but I didn't know what the benefits were, I just knew I felt amazing and a real sense of calm after these sessions.

Having originally trained as an Occupational Therapist, I already had an interest in the human body, but I had to give this up after three years as it was too much strain on my knees. I went back to university and ended up with a PhD and an interest in science-based approaches to health and wellbeing.

During Covid, I trained as an Oxygen Advantage Instructor which (like the Thermalist® Method), is a science-based approach to help people improve their daily breathing patterns for better health and sports performance.

In 2024 I trained as a Menopause Wellbeing Practitioner and wanted to bring together my breathing and cold water knowledge to offer midlife women a natural way to reduce stress and manage menopausal symptoms. I therefore created an open water swimming group called the "Flushed Dippers" and a lot of them are now swimming through the winter. I then installed a sauna in my garden and started running Garden Spa Evenings using contrast therapy for midlife women.

I then came across Susanna Soeberg's work and was super excited to discover she was launching the Thermalist® Instructor training. I really wanted to dig into the science behind hot and cold therapy to ensure I understood what heat and cold actually does to your physiology and mental health and ensure I was delivering it in a safe way with science-backed protocols.

Thermalist® Method Workshops introduce you to using heat, cold, breathwork and mindfulness to improve your long-term health, reduce chronic stress and re-connect your body and mind. I look forward to bringing these practices into your life!