Is cold water dipping the magic ingredient to mastering menopause?!

If you follow me on social media, then unless you were hiding under a rock or taking a social media break, there is no way that you will have missed the various videos, images and updates of me screaming, shivering or occasionally smiling my way through my Cold Water Challenge in October.
So, what did the challenge entail, why did I do it and what did I learn during those 31 long days?!
This was a fundraiser that popped up in my feed sometime back in the hot and oppressive days of the summer, when the very idea that the river water might turn cold or that there might be days with constant rain and driving wind seemed utterly inconceivable.
The aim of the fundraiser for Surfers Against Sewage was simple: Raise money by taking a dip in cold water every day during October.
I care passionately about the seas and had been using the Surfers Against Sewage app during the summer months, to monitor where sewage was being released and which swimming spots were safe for us to visit to help us cool down during the summer, so it seemed a perfect cause for me.
So, I signed up and boldly (aka naively) proclaimed that I would set myself a minimum limit of 2 minutes each day, that I would not wear a wetsuit and that I would do as many of the swims/dips outside as possible.