How it went
Did it last?
- No one said the benefit wore off.
- No one said they needed to keep it up to stay well.
Read from what people wrote. A story that ends without a follow-up counts as lasting, so treat these as minimums.
| Outcome described | Accounts | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Full recovery | 0 | 0% |
| Near-full | 1 | 33% |
| Substantial | 0 | 0% |
| Partial | 2 | 67% |
| Relapsed | 0 | 0% |
| No benefit | 0 | 0% |
Only 3 accounts. Treat these percentages as anecdotes, not rates.
By how ill people were
| Severity at worst | How it went | n | Recovered |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moderate | 3 | 33% |
0 accounts don’t say how ill the person was.
How often it comes up
Posts that mention Cryotherapy and cold exposure, per 1,000 posts each year. Hover a point for the count.
Show as a table
| Year | Posts mentioning it | All posts | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 0 | 184 | 0.0 |
| 2010 | 0 | 682 | 0.0 |
| 2011 | 1 | 704 | 1.4 |
| 2012 | 1 | 1,491 | 0.7 |
| 2013 | 1 | 1,995 | 0.5 |
| 2014 | 0 | 2,707 | 0.0 |
| 2015 | 1 | 2,566 | 0.4 |
| 2016 | 2 | 2,023 | 1.0 |
| 2017 | 0 | 3,381 | 0.0 |
| 2018 | 3 | 2,523 | 1.2 |
| 2019 | 0 | 1,637 | 0.0 |
| 2020 | 1 | 3,318 | 0.3 |
| 2021 | 1 | 2,469 | 0.4 |
| 2022 | 3 | 1,871 | 1.6 |
| 2023 | 0 | 2,362 | 0.0 |
| 2024 | 25 | 2,176 | 11.5 |
| 2025 | 7 | 1,349 | 5.2 |
| 2026 (so far) | 1 | 899 | 1.1 |
Posts in the forum threads and blog comments we archived, 34,337 in all, counted per year. A mention means the post names the treatment, not that the writer took it. These pages all contain a recovery story, so they show what those communities discussed, not everyone with ME/CFS or long COVID. All trends
All 3 accounts
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I've mostly recovered, but I'm not quite 100% yet. Is the methylation cycle the key?
Eight years after a crash that followed years of exercise intolerance since age 15, he credits cold showers, pantethine and especially adrenal glandular extract — "the most important by far" — with giving him "more or less...a normal life": full-time study…
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Why Cold Exposure May Help with ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia and Long COVID
Cold water immersion, roughly 20-minute sessions at about 60F/14C in a hydro tank, is used by a commenter with low-end moderate ME/CFS who spends most of her time in bed; illness duration is not stated. She says the primary benefit is emotional, describing…
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Why Cold Exposure May Help with ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia and Long COVID
Cold exposure, via dips in a cold creek and use of an Ice Beanie, is used regularly by a commenter functioning at roughly 30% (low-to-moderate ME/CFS); illness duration is not stated. They describe the cold sessions as seeming to reset something and…