I've been cold plunging for a year. It's helped control my anxiety.

• I started cold plunging about a year ago and have been doing it almost every day.
• I started with an inflatable tank, and once I was hooked, I upgraded to a proper tub.

Last winter, it seemed like I couldn't scroll social media for more than a few seconds without seeing multiple posts about cold plunging. I was annoyed by the repetition but also curious.

As soon I clicked on a post, I was treated to a feed of strangers in tubs of ice water surrounded by snow, sipping their morning coffee and espousing the virtues of the cold plunge. I'm not a sucker for marketing, but as a native Mainer, I am a big fan of cold water, so it was hard for me to resist a try at plunging myself.

Almost a year later, I've been cold plunging almost every day, and it's helped me be a more calm dad.

My wife bought me my first cold-plunge tub for my birthday

After hearing me talk nonstop about how I wanted to try dipping into the practice, my wife gifted me an Icepod. The pod is one of several brands that make fairly affordable and portable cold-plunge tubs.

I immediately set it up on my deck. I live in Maine, where it's still cold in mid-March, and the hose water was a brisk 42 degrees.

The temperature of the water would allow me to avoid buying ice for weeks, I thought, since the idea is always to keep the plunge tub at a certain temperature.

The first time I got in, the cold took my breath away

Despite my affection for the cold waters of Maine — where I regularly swim on days that others would not consider — my first plunge was a shock. The cold water took my breath away, and all I could think about was getting out, which I promptly did.

A friend recommended I stay in until I could regulate my breath, and on my next try, I took several deep breaths and relaxed within 30 seconds, which allowed me to stay for longer. It became relatively easy after that, and soon my dunks were over two minutes and sometimes up to five. I'd read that the long-term benefits of plunging come after 11 minutes a week, which was easy to achieve with sessions of two-plus minutes, seven days a week. It helped that I never wanted to skip, even on hard days, and overcoming these days became a benefit of its own.

Cold plunging has helped my mental health the most

The physical and mental feeling after a plunge is amazing. My body sometimes feels cool for an hour afterward, but I don't have a prolonged feeling of coldness or shivering.

It also relieves soreness and inflammation, which is great for me because I still have pain from past sports injuries.

Mentally, the benefits have been much greater, though. I've struggled with anxiety since childhood, although not to a degree to be medicated. As a stay-at-home father of three young children, including twin 3-year-olds, my anxiety can sometimes take over and make parenting extremely difficult.

When the dad rage kicks in and three demanding kids are begging for attention, it's difficult to take 20 minutes to enjoy a peaceful meditation. A plunge, however, only takes two minutes, and for me, it's like an instant reset button.

I'll tell the kids I'm gonna go plunge, and they'll not only let me do it, they often come watch. They've all gotten in once to feel the water. As soon as I'm submerged, the chatter in my brain, pretty much a constant, ceases. After a minute, I find calm, and by the time I exit, I'm ready to be an engaged dad for the rest of the day.

It's been nothing short of remarkable for me. To top it off, my sleep has improved, and I haven't been sick in the past eight months.

I upgraded to a bigger tub

After enjoying this for a couple of months, I decided I was in it for the long haul — but I had no interest in filling my tub with ice every day and emptying, cleaning, and refilling it every few days. So I switched to a Plunge, a luxury cold-plunge tub that's been on my deck since it arrived, and it's my favorite thing.

The Plunge has an electric chiller that cools down to 39 degrees and can go up to 104 degrees. Keeping the water crystal clear and cold has been easy, and although the tub is expensive, it's worth it for someone serious about carrying on with this fad, which I definitely am.