I'd been considering cryotherapy for some time now thanks to an old gym injury that has left me with chronic pain in my lower back. After trying chiropractic adjustments, yoga, stretching (basically anything non-surgical), I just assumed it was something I was going to deal with on a regular basis. Just about everything I've tried seemed to be a temporary fix and I would end up with my back throbbing, yet again.

I decided to book an appointment at CryoZone Santa Monica to better understand all the hype surrounding cryotherapy. While I was there, I met with one of the founders, Joshua Montross, who gave me some insight into the company and its mission. Montross' family has been importing cryotherapy machines for years and finally decided to make cryo services more accessible to people by opening up their own studios.

Montross became a firm believer in the power of cryotherapy after a car accident left him with pain and stiffness in his neck, hands and knees that would not go away. Intense back to back treatments followed by maintenance sessions have gotten him feeling back to his pre-accident self. This left me intrigued and wondering how it would help me.

Being someone who is cold all the time, I definitely wondered how I would fare in the cryo chamber. Would it be a painful, jarring experience or would it be something soothing and help to ease my back pain? Being an avid gym-goer and all-around active person who hates being in pain, I decided to try it for myself. Follow my two-week journey as I tried cryotherapy.

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Whole body cryotherapy is a type of treatment in which the entire body (minus the head and neck) is encased in a chamber that fills with liquid nitrogen. The liquid nitrogen is misted around your body for three minutes, putting you into a subzero environment (in this case, around -200 degrees Fahrenheit.) This extreme drop in temperature causes the fight-or-flight response in which the blood travels from your extremities to your core where it is filtered to remove toxins and then oxygen-rich blood is pumped back through your body. This process removes lactic acid, which builds up in your body when you work out — it's one of the biggest contributors to inflammation and muscle pain. Flushing out the lactic acid means flushing out the pain and inflammation. (Buh-bye day-after-leg-day pain!)

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Whole body cryotherapy was started in Japan in the 1970s as an alternative treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. It only became readily available in the states within the last decade. In my time spent at CryoZone, I met and spoke with patients from all walks of life. From healing an injury, to post-op recovery, to sufferers of chronic pain and auto-immune afflictions, to migraines, to individuals managing anxiety and depression — it really is a holistic way to treat pain that comes in so many different forms. In speaking with Montross, I learned that a large percentage of clientele are athletes seeking cryotherapy post-workout, to minimize inflammation, recover faster and perform better.

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From the moment I arrived, I knew I was in for a shock. I had my blood pressure taken and was asked to fill out a waiver. Cryo is not intended for pregnant women or those who have heart conditions. As always, it's best to ask your doctor if you are unsure whether or not you should try cryotherapy. CryoZone offers two different chambers for therapy — one chamber that feels less intense and you remain still the entire time and the other, which feels more intense, has three different settings and you need to rotate your body every 30 seconds to ensure even distribution of the liquid nitrogen. For my first time, I decided to try the less intense chamber — hey, I'm a self-proclaimed wuss when it comes to cold.

When it's time for your treatment, you go into a private room and strip down naked (or down to a bra and underwear, if you so choose) and are given two pairs of gloves and a pair of socks and boots. After donning the hand and footwear, you enter the cryo chamber, close the door behind you and press the ON button. One of the friendly and knowledgeable staff enters the room and starts talking to you. Fear not, for the chamber completely surrounds your body so you have total privacy. I found it a little strange at first to be chit-chatting while undergoing cryotherapy but by the end, you realize it's such a welcome distraction from the cold.

Image courtesy Hannah Savin

I spent my first few treatments in the milder cryo chamber, before working my way up to the more intense one. From the moment you open the door, you can see the vapor pouring out and the ice crystals forming inside. After a quick "now or never" pep talk, I hopped inside and pushed the button.

Right away, one of the staff enters the room and starts talking to you. You'll notice it's a bit hard to think of intelligent responses as your body starts to shiver and all you can think about is how cold it is. About a minute into therapy, my body starts to shake uncontrollably and I start bounding around — literally like a small child who has to pee just to take my mind off my current situation. When the last minute rolls around, you feel your body start to acclimate and things aren't quite so bad. While you still might be dancing a bit, conversation starts to flow more naturally.

I can't say I noticed a huge difference in the coldness when I used the more intense chamber. I really think the mind does anything to block out those moments when we are in fight or flight mode. The major difference that I experienced was having to quarter-turn my body every 30 seconds, which also serves as a nice distraction from the cold. Also, because it's a dry cold, you'll find it's much less severe than plunging your body into icy water.

Image courtesy Hannah Savin