If you’re feeling the gut-wrenching, crushing feeling of stress, you can get help from float therapy. People in Corona, CA find they get relief when they take advantage of the float tanks or float cabins available. Sounds intriguing doesn’t it? But just what is float therapy? Float therapy can take place in a tank or a large room with a float pool. The water is body temperature and contains enough Epsom salt to keep you buoyant without any effort. The room is darkened when the client is ready and there’s total silence. It removes sensory stimulation and puts the brain and nervous system at ease.
That lack of sensory input allows the mind to relax.
Some say floating can increase creativity. In fact, studies show that it increases concentration and focus. Studies show that people who used float therapy improved intellectual performance in both school and at work. It helps the body to relax and that relaxation alone can make a huge difference in allowing the mind to be more creative and productivity to increase. It works similar to meditation, but doesn’t take any time to learn.
Floating helps reduce the hormones of stress.
Cortisol is one of the hormones released during stress. It can wreak havoc on the body, affecting all the systems and can even cause weight gain. Chronic high cortisol levels can increase the risk for heart disease, high blood pressure and emotional dysfunction, such as memory problems and anxiety. Floating helps lower cortisol levels. In fact, studies show that floating on a regular basis not only lowers cortisol levels, it also lowers blood pressure and improves the feeling of well-being.
The water is filled with Epsom salt.
The Epsom salt—magnesium sulfate—in the water at a float facility, helps keep the body buoyant and floating with ease, but it also performs another service for the body. The magnesium is absorbed into the body through the skin and can naturally reduce muscle tension and provide stress relief. Today, many people are deficient in magnesium and that means a lower production of serotonin, which improves the mood and helps combat anxiety and stress. The other part of the equation for Epsom salt is sulfur. People used to flock to sulfur springs for its curative effect. That’s where Epsom salt was first discovered, it’s a natural product that came from the saline springs in Epsom, England.
- Floating can be done in a bathing suit or for the ultimate experience, without any clothing. There’s complete privacy, so it’s all up to the comfort level of the person who is floating.
- A study published in the Journal of the Canadian Pain Society in 2001 concluded that floating helped reduce anxiety and depression, while also inducing an optimistic attitude. .
- Floating helps reduce distractions. There are no sensory distractions in the tank. There’s no cell phone, no noise, no light and a feeling of weightlessness. That total relief from sensory stimulation can help lower stress levels and bring back a healthier state of mind.
- One Swedish study followed subjects who had a twelve session program and found the positive effects of floating lasted approximately four months.
