The Practice of Floating

Have you ever Floated or even heard of it?

I hadn’t until last week and truthfully I can’t wait to start. The Float House will be opening here in Victoria next month, and I will be lined up at the door…well it might be too cold and you know how well I do with that, I’ll be waiting in the car then.

Picture yourself closing your eyes and Floating for 90 minutes…the escape…the silence…turning yourself off to the outside world…and looking in on yourself. As pictured below, you Float in 10″of water that has been filled with 800lbs of Epson Salts, alone in a Float tank( aka. isolation tank aka. sensory deprivation tank) yes, just like Olivia did on the past T.V. show Fringe.

Health Benefits, body and mind, for pain management, stress relief, increased immune function and endorphins, the list goes on. On their website under the heading of Why Float? they had me Floating at their first point alone. It reads as follows:

Relaxation Response

The tank suppresses the functioning of the sympathetic nervous system which when active produces our ‘fight or flight’ response. And it then activates the parasympathetic nervous system which is responsible for relaxation, healing, replenishment, etc. Some physical symptoms of the relaxation response are decreased muscle tension, decreased blood pressure, decreased stress hormones, and increased endorphins.

The thought of my ‘fight or flight’ response being turned down, I’m breathing a sigh of relief. After my first float I promise to let you know how it was and the benefits I received from it. I kid you not I have been at their website at least twice a day, learning, sharing and just anticipating my 1st Float…ahhh

UPDATE

I’ve enjoyed 3 Floats now and will be a floater for life! Firstly The Float House in Victoria is amazing, the staff, the decor, the experience!
Each room has a shower, the Floating Pod/Capsule and it’s large filter. All pods are equipped with light therapy and choice of music.Once you emerge yourself into the salt water you immediately become buoyant, all the pressures of the universe are gone and you are weightless. My first visit was a discovery experience,learning to relax in the pod and a great chance to practice some deep breathing. My following trips to the Float House were incredible as I was able to meditate and fall into a peaceful sleep both times. Such a treat, a peaceful escape from every day chronic pain.