i HATE jumping into a cold pool: what to do?

I HATE jumping into a cold pool; sure, call me a whimp, but anyway ... Does anyone have suggestions to combat this? I seem to recall that English Channel swimmers used to coat themselves with something (Vaseline?) to protect themselves from the extreme conditions of the channel. Is there a strategy that someone could share with me? Do body suits help? Thanks for the advice. You can email me direct with an answer if you want at PeoriaBums@aol.com.