The Cool Way - Douwe van den Berg, Groningen (2026)

03/06/2025

Our work is very connected to the seasons. Autumn till early spring is where we chase the cold and have most of our travels and workshops. Spring and summer are for us a time to rest, learn new skills and plan our next events (and also do the less fun computer work).

At the moment we are learning new skills in a more tropical setting and exploring the local cold exposure scene😊 It is interesting to see how common icebaths are here in Thailand. Every muay thai or yoga center has some form of cold bath!

Even though we won’t be teaching for a while, we already have many events planned for 2025 and 2026 – including new winter travels and the ICE Academy dates. You can find the info on the link in bio.

04/11/2024

I enjoy mental and physical challenges, and climbing a mountain in winter is definitely one of them.

There are many things I love about it: connecting with nature and the elements, the group experience, the physical and mental challenge, and so much more. One of the great things about this type of challenge is that you can prepare for it in a relatively short time.

It certainly helps to have prior experience with ice baths and to be fit enough to hike in the mountains for a few hours. But once you meet those requirements and have the right guidance, you can be ready to face this challenge in just a few days.

As a teacher, preparing a group for the mountain is one of my favorite teaching challenges. It’s essential that the group is not only physically, mentally, and logistically prepared, but also that they have become a strong, cohesive team. We climb the mountain as a group, and the stronger the group, the more powerful the experience.

I love preparing and guiding groups this way, and I’ve led more than 30 groups this way. That said, I still enjoy the climb when I don’t have the responsibility of leading others and can simply challenge myself again 😊.

This winter, there will be three opportunities to climb a mountain with us:
- 17th -23rd of November, Poland
- 12th - 17th of January, Harz, Germany
- 15th - 21st of february, Poland

If you'd like to join, check the link in our bio for more information on our winter adventures.

14/09/2024

Weather can change fast in the mountains. Within a week we experienced Sommer, Autumn and Winter.

We visited during the week 3 different mountain lakes. On each day, the weather was completely different. Pouring rain, sun and even snow. Lots of snow. I don't know if I have seen weather change so fast as here. Every time it gave us other opportunities. With the right mindset and preparation, there is no bad weather:)

At least to some extent;)

Thanks and all the guests for the wonderful week!

With

31/08/2024

I feel proud, happy and tired.

We have started our Intentional Cold Exposure Academy!

It is a dream coming true to share our way with the cold with other cold enthusiasts:)

07/06/2024

This is one of my favorite cold water meditations. It is perfect in spring when the water is fresh, which allows for more subtle awareness. It is also great with ice-cold water. It even works with warm water:) I love how the world looks different when you open your eyes again.

When you do this exercise in ice cold water, it is good to already have some experience, this is not the easiest to do on your first ice bath.

13/08/2023

The mysterious placebo part 4: placebo effects

‘The Placebo effect’ is mostly referred to in singular, as if it is just one type of phenomenon with one specific cause. It gives a nice feeling of clarity, as if we really understand what is happening and how it is caused.

However the reality is more complex. There is not one, but many different placebo effects with “..different mechanisms, different systems, medical conditions, and therapeutic interventions” (Benedetti et al 2003).

Expectation and Conditioning can play a role, but also cultural meaning, personal history, genes, the clinical context and the interpersonal relationship. It is a big umbrella term for many different psycho-socio-biological phenomena.

If you want to hear more fancy words and hear examples of these psycho-socio and biological phenomena, you can join my Free Zoom Lecture on the placebo effect. More information here: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/thecoolway/979342

12/08/2023

The mysterious placebo Part 3: A contradiction in terms

A common definition of placebo is ‘medication that doesn’t have an effect’.
So what is the placebo effect? The effect of something that doesn’t have an effect? It sounds more like a philosophical paradox or zen koan, then a useful term in modern medicine.

A placebo effect is the effect that is caused by anything but the placebo. So healing might happen because of the therapeutic relationship, because of your belief or the belief of the doctor in healing or anything else, except for the placebo (cause a placebo doesn’t work).

Confusing? Yes! It is like calling the effect of taking antibiotics the ‘white coat effect’ or the ‘prescription effect’. It makes it harder to understand how the effects work, instead of that it clarifies.

Most placebo effect researchers seem to agree that this term should be replaced with another one. But like often in academics, there is no agreement yet on which term should replace it😊 Some possibilities are ‘meaning response’, ‘contextual healing’, ‘healing response’ and ‘interpersonal healing’.

If you want to learn more about the placebo effect, you can join my free zoom call on the 5th of september. More information here: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/thecoolway/979342

11/08/2023

The mysterious placebo: part 2 a short history of the meaning of placebo

‘Placebo’ and ‘placebo effect’ are confusing terms with many different associations. A part of the confusion around the meaning of placebo and placebo effect comes from the history of the word. Here a short overview to clarify different ways that it is used.

The word placebo (‘I will please’ in latin) was part of a psalm and in the middle ages, ‘to sing placebo’ got the meaning of ‘to flatter’. Placebo came to mean flatterer or sycophant.

The word became associated with medicine in the 18th century, where a doctor might sometimes want to please a patient who wishes some form of medicine and the doctor would give anything (a placebo) to please the wishes of the patient.

With the start of randomized controlled Trials (RCT) in medicine, the term placebo was used to refer to the medication that didn’t contain any working ingredients. This was to test if the medicine worked better than if you would just let the disease follow its course. In the medicine group people are given medicine and in the control group (or placebo group), people are given a ‘placebo’.

In this setting, you want that the effects in the medicine group outperform, the effects in the placebo group, otherwise it means that ingredients of you medicine don’t work. So there was a slight shift in meaning of the term placebo.
Here placebo means medication without working ingredient,

Within these RCT trials, there was the surprising discovery that patients might even have beneficial effects when they received medicine without active ingredients. This is the famous placebo effect, which brings in the associations of healing and miraculous recovery.

A big part of the confusion that people have when they talk about 'placebo' and 'placebo effect', is that it can mean different things in different contexts. On the one hand it means medicine without active ingredients, or the effects in the control group. In another context, it means the healing effects that are caused by belief, meaning and interpersonal relationships.

It would be helpful to have a different word for the healing effects, so that there is less association with trickery and ineffectiveness. There are different words proposed, but like often in academy, there is no consensus yet on what term should replace the term 'Placebo effect'.

If you want to learn more about the placebo effect, you can join my free zoom call on the 5th of september. More information here: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/thecoolway/979342

10/08/2023

The Mysterious Placebo Effect: Part 1

The placebo effect has become famous in our popular understanding. At the same time, there is a lot of confusion and a wide range of opinions on what it means. The placebo effect is at the same time mystified, demonized and idealized.

On one side, there are sceptical reductionists who use the term ‘placebo effect’ to dismiss the effect of a therapy. In the sense that it is ‘just the placebo effect’ or ‘a mere placebo’ with which they mean that there is no effect, or no ‘real effect’. They might say: “This (fill in alternative medicine) doesn’t really work, people just think it works. They naturally got better. It is all just regression to the mean.”

On the other side of the spectrum (into alternative healing land), there is the opposite explanation of what ‘placebo effect’ means: “Look, placebos show that you can affect your body with your thoughts, therefore thoughts are powerful, if you have the right thoughts you can achieve anything, SCIENCE shows it!!! You are the placebo!!! The Secret is right!!! Whatever you think becomes true!!!”.

The truth lies somewhere in between. What does ‘placebo effect’ mean to you? What associations do you have with the placebo effect and what are examples for you of the placebo effect at work?

Over the next days, I will continue sharing on ‘the placebo effect’ (and also why I don’t like the term).

Also, on the 5th of September, I will give a Free Zoom Lecture on the mysterious placebo effect. More information on this link: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/thecoolway/979342

18/10/2022

No real injury here:)

Last week I took part in an outdoor first aid course. I was really impressed with the quality of the course. In most courses, it is mostly theory with a little bit of practice, here practice was central and the theory came afterwards.

Over 3 days, we were thrown into different scenarios, without knowing what would happen. A part of the group would play the victims. The fake blood and other details made the scenarios feel very realistic. Even when you know that the person is acting, heartrate goes up and you try to help the person as best as you can in the moment.

A really great way of learning. The theory becomes so much more interesting, urgent and relevant when you have just tried to save somebodies life.

It was also interesting to be in the perspective of the patient and to feel what calms you down or stresses you out.

I can recommend a course like this to everybody. Especially if you guide groups in Nature.

Many thanks to the teacher Nathalie Braun and the organizers

The Cool Way - Douwe van den Berg

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