Me Time—the benefits of float therapy

Float therapy is fast becoming the modern-day “men’s shed” or “man cave”, a space where you can reflect on life, your relationships with your family, friends and work colleagues, a place where no one can disturb you. Water Temple has created an urban sanctuary and floating offers a calm place that allows you to process, review your goals and think about the direction you’re heading in. This private time also enables the brain to file and delete stored information, rebooting the hard drive and giving you more disk space to receive potential ideas. Your time in the float tank is regenerative both mentally and physically. You will find the voice in your head, aka “the monkey mind” begins to calm down throughout your float session and gets quieter. The result is that your mind will feel clearer, your thoughts more objective and creative.  Float therapy gives you just what you need, some “me” time.

Floatation therapy

The simplicity of a float tank is easy to describe; mix 600 kg of Epsom salt with 1000 litres of water, and this salty solution is heated to skin temperature, allowing one to float effortlessly, and lose a sense of space and time. Modern floatation tanks have the option of lights on and audio playing but ideally, one lays back and drifts into theta to fully experience an altered state. You’re unplugging from the world around you; enabling the brain to relax and reset and allowing for the most profound rest humanly possible.

Float therapy is also being used as a visualisation tool, think Steph Curry, Tom Brady and Novak Djokovic all use floatation to visualise how they will play their next game. This is the ultimate environment to listen to motivational podcasts and dream big as the brain is most open to suggestive thoughts when it is so relaxed and has no distractions.

Silence is golden

In the silence of the float tank, you will start to notice both your breathing and heartbeat as your senses are heightened. With this enhanced sense of self-awareness, you can focus on your breath and learn to change its rhythm. By deepening and slowing your inhalation and exhalation you can have a calming effect on your heart rate, and this will lower the level of stress and anxiety you may be feeling. The synergy of zero-gravity created by the magnesium-rich solution and the skin temperature water encourages deep relaxation and removes all pressure from the spine; your blood flow improves, aiding in better circulation and reducing inflammation and any pain that may be causing stress in the body. The sensation felt from floating continues for days,  and  will leave you feeling more rejuvenated and balanced.

 Better overall health from float therapy

 In a world with ever-increasing demands on our senses, constant background noise from our devices, music, podcasts, and on-demand shows, we are leaving little space to be in silence. By slowing down, we can observe the things happening around us which helps us to be present in the moment. Research studies have already confirmed the countless benefits of meditation and being in silence, along with the numerous health benefits associated with this.

  • Lowering blood pressure
  • Stimulating brain growth
  • Improving sleep
  • Recovery from any sports or physical activity
  • Headaches and migraines
  • Muscle tension
  • Joint pain
  • Calming racing thought
  • Improving concentration and focus
  • Stimulating creativity

 Floating is the ideal place to help with managing stress

Modern-day stressors are creating elevated cortisol levels in many people. Known as the stress hormone, everybody produces cortisol naturally. When we are exposed to stress for prolonged periods, this stress becomes chronic, and a by-product of chronic stress can be elevated cortisol levels that don’t fluctuate as they usually should throughout the day (highest in the morning, lowest at night). Float therapy has been scientifically proven to decrease cortisol levels after just one session and even more so with repeat sessions. Too much cortisol contributes to other health issues, such as poorly regulated blood sugar levels, suppressed immunity, weight gain, microbiome imbalance, gastrointestinal problems, and chronic anxiety. When one begins to make floating a regular practice, one will naturally decrease cortisol levels, helping the body and brain manage stress levels differently. Floating regularly relieves stress during the float, but it also helps with your ability to manage stress and increases stress resiliency beyond your float experience. After a float, you return to the world with a calmer state of mind that is better equipped to handle the pressures of life. Floating will leave you feeling more rejuvenated and balanced.