Is this how you feel when you get into the shower, and realize the hot water’s been shut off?

Or are you more like this?

Whether you like it or not, there are serious benefits to having a cold shower. For me, those include cooling down after a 95-degree day in Manhattan with no access to a pool or a beach. But there are other wins besides that.

Advantages of a chilly shower:

• Stimulating your immune system and preventing colds. Studies have shown that as unbearable as colds shower can be, they're actually really good for your health. 
• The quick change in temperature can increase alertness by shocking your body into being more awake. Hungover? Turn on the cold. Bad night's sleep? You'll forget all about under a steady stream of freezing water. (And doesn't that sound fun?)
• On the more superficial side, cold showers are great for tightening up your skin and reducing hair loss. 
• They have also been proven to stimulate your metabolism, for when you're feeling particularly icky.
• Lastly, a "cooler" shower (around 68 degrees farenheit) for two to three minutes once or twice daily is recommended by researchers as a treatment for depression. (Do check in with your doctor on this one though.)

If these didn't quite convince you, there are also quite a few benefits to a hot shower:

• Most of us know by now that a hot shower helps us relax. When we're stressed out, warm water has the ultimate calming effect. There's no technology, no makeup, and (usually) no other people.
• Got a headache? Take a hot shower. They alleviate migraines.
• Hot showers also help to soothe your stiff muscles and reduce body tension. And if you have one of those showerheads that give you a massage, it's a double win.
• Hot steam works as a nasal decongestant when you're feeling under the weather, relieving cold symptoms (though if you'd had a cold shower, maybe you wouldn't have one in the first place).
• They also remove toxins from your skin and open up your pores.

The jury's out on this one. Some like it hot. Some like it cold. But the good news is, there are benefits both ways.