Spending an hour enclosed in a floatation tank sounds like a claustrophobic's nightmare. If you're after a feeling of extreme calm and effortless relaxation however, floatation could be right up your street.'Floating' is a method of attaining deep mental and physical relaxation whilst lying quietly in a dark, warm, ten inch deep solution of Epsom Salts. It sounds a bit like something you might see on Star Trek but ironically this is the closest you're likely to get to experiencing weightlessness. (Unless Richard Branson's space flights come dramatically down in price!)
Research has shown that floating can reduce both your blood pressure and heart rate. Great for stress bunnies! It's good for sports injuries, those with back problems and great for the circulation. In the gravity free environment of the floatation tank, the body can balance and heal itself and one hour of floating can give the effect of 4 solid hours of sleep. It's also totally safe, natural and great if you're heavily pregnant and want to feel light as a feather in spite of your stomach!
Floatation's not always done in a coffin shaped tank. At Floatocean in Peterborough, it's a floatation room, tall enough to stand up in and wide enough for most claustrophobics to handle. It's fully enclosed and private with a door you control yourself and low level lighting. You step into the lovely body temperature warm water, lower yourself down and...well at first it was hard to let go and just lie back. I was scared to let my head and neck relax in case I sank. Gradually though, you trust in the power of the water and once you've given yourself up to the float and let the relaxing music soothe any nerves, you learn that your body is actually a bit like a floating cork. In fact you even forget you're in water. The room feels so warm and comforting I can only liken it to lying on a bed of warm jelly. And what a lovely feeling that is too!
Different people get different experiences from floating. Some feel emotional, some euphoria, others just boredom. I lay there for a while thinking "Oh, it'll be boredom for me then..." but somehow I started thinking about the sea and dolphins and waves gently lapping against the shore and I was gone. Don't ask me where. Hawaii probably.
When I realised where I was I had no idea how much time had passed. This happened a couple of times, drifting in and out, sometimes imagining I was moving, (a common feeling apparently). Next thing, I was aware the music was starting again, a signal that the float was over and I had a fleeting thought of "Is that it?"
Ten minutes later, showered and in the lounge area sipping my peppermint tea, I became suddenly aware that an hour of my life had passed unaccounted for and I had the strange realisation that I felt GREAT! My head felt light, my limbs relaxed, my mood fantastic! I'm told regular 'floaters' experience more and more profound relaxation the more often they do it. If all it takes to feel this good is to lie in a darkened pool of warm, salt water for an hour, then I can't think of a more natural and holistic hobby to take up. Gloria who owns Floatocean told me that after her very first float, she and her husband didn't argue for 5 days, no mean feat apparently! While I don't think it would be wise for me to claim that floatation can save marriages, I would certainly say it'll do you some good anyway!
For more information go to www.floatocean.co.uk or call Gloria on 01733 560 770.
