“Cold Showers, Warm Hearts — and the Biology of Meaning” We spend billions searching for the cure to cancer, yet somehow forget the simplest medicine of all: being alive on purpose. Not surviving — living. With taste, with sweat, and, occasionally, with a scream in an ice bath. At a recent lecture on psychoneuroimmunology (PNI), the message was clear: the body doesn’t just respond to pills, but to purpose. A strong immune system is not only built in the lab — it’s built in the heart, the gut, and the stories we tell ourselves. It thrives on laughter, good food, shared effort, and the feeling that life still has something worth doing. When people have no purpose, their biology drifts. Inflammation becomes chronic, sleep becomes shallow, and the immune system starts acting like a bored teenager — distracted and moody. But give that same person a reason to get up, someone to care for, a garden to tend, or even a dream that sounds a little crazy, and something magical happens: their cells listen. The immune system straightens its back and says, “Alright, boss, we’ve got work to do.” Researchers now confirm what our grandmothers already knew: A walk with friends heals better than a pill taken alone. Singing in a choir can lower inflammation more than arguing on Twitter. And yes, purpose — that mysterious sense of “why” — can shrink tumors, or at least grow courage. So what’s the secret formula? It’s not hidden in a pharmaceutical vault. It’s in the simple rituals that make you human: Eat real food that makes you smile. Work your body until it remembers it’s alive. Breathe the cold air until it bites — and then laugh about it. Surround yourself with people who remind you why it’s all worth it. Because in the end, health is not the absence of disease — it’s the presence of meaning. So yes, go to the gym. Jump into that freezing lake with Wim Hof and a few mad friends. Cook something delicious. Make a mess. Live a life your immune system can believe in. #wimhof #cancer #eenzaamheid