Floatation R.E.S.T. (Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy/ Technique)

[luke wilson]

Hey,

Anyone ever tried this?

Floatation R.E.S.T. (Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy/ Technique) is floating on top of a 25cm deep pool of salt water in an especially designed tank. The tank resembles a large enclosed bathtub. Usually constructed from fibreglass and is built so as to eliminate all outside distractions such as sight, sound, tactile sensations, and gravity. A large amount of Epsom salt is added to the water to create optimal buoyancy. The water is warmed to a temperature of 35.5 centigrade. All these elements help create an atmosphere in which one can achieve a profound feeling of relaxation and well-being.

There is a floatation center near-by that a colleague recommended. Apparently they are meant to be quite meditative but I have no personal experience and in search of other people's experience of using these tanks.

Looking online, there are some studies that state they are good for stress relief amongst other things.

 

[Thor]

I have tried it about 15 times. It's quite pleasant although I always fell asleep.

As I understand it, the absence of external stimuli and floatation in water that is the same as the body temperature (it was 37 degrees centigrade where I tried it) helps to diminish the experience of boundaries between oneself and the environment. My hypothesis is that this lack of experience physical boundaries can lead to a similar reduction in the distinction between self and other in the mind. I know several people who had very deep spiritual experiences while in the floatation tank.

I have also heard of many people who have benefitted therapeutically from sensory deprivation tanks and I think that letting down the defences within the mind leads to more balanced energy body that can affect physical body symptoms though a mind-body connection.

While such treatment modalities may relieve physical or mental symptoms I don't think they can stand alone, without looking at lifestyle, diet, breathing exercises such as EE, etc. at the same time.

FWIW

 

[luke wilson]

Had my first session.

It was a new experience. The most interesting thing about it is the feeling of floating as the water you are lying on doesn't feel like water, and the temperature is designed to match your body temperature. It feels like you are floating on some fluid type thing and because there is no solidity to it, you notice most of the tension in your body, as it adjusts to find equilibrium. By lying there for awhile, it helps you naturally relax and sort of just feel that feeling of effortlessly floating.

In terms of the senses, the environment is meant to be pitch black so you can't see anything. The room/pod is soundproof so you can't hear anything plus unless you touch the enclosure, if you just remain floating, you have very minimal feeling other than the sensations of floating.

The hour for me flew by, it felt like 30 minutes really. Nothing much happened mentally, I found my mind to be rather blank, just a big void of blankness. At some point I started sort of chatting to myself, wondering how long has passed, asking myself what's meant to happen etc. If anything I felt quite lucid, in the moment, it wasn't like my mind went into dreaming. I personally wouldn't classify the experience as spiritual. For me, it was just floating.

I didn't get the full hour though as for some reason, technical errors descended upon the place during my session. So I was in a room speciafically built for floating as it's my 1st session, not a pod which for 1st timers can be abit scary apparently. The lighting just failed. First of all, they were meant to go off automatically, they didn't. There is a panic button in there which I pressed to get one of the guy's to come fix it, didn't work. Eventually I got up and went to switch the light off manually. Then the emergency lights started glowing during the session.

On hearing this at the end of the session, I was offered 4 more sessions at a super reduced price which I took. On paying for this, the card machine just broke in my hands. Then went to be shown one of the pods which totally failed and had to be manually overridden to get it to open.

If anything, the only unusual thing about the whole float experience was the technical errors occurring. Just my luck!

Hopefully next time it'll be seamless and can float in harmony. I felt like I should have been annoyed especially at the situation with the lights but I just sort of accepted it really.

 

[Rauno]

I have had like 200+ floating sessions; but as strange as it may seem, I have a lot less to say about it now than when I have had 13 sessions or so.

:D

Yes it works with your system in multiple ways ...

 

[Resistense]

I would recommend this therapy from my experience as well. I've found it to be a great aid for relaxation (vagal tone), mindfulness, and proprioception (sensing your body and its position in space, as well as its tensions). You can also absorb a lot of magnesium and sulfur in there, but careful not to get the saltwater in your eyes as it'll sting

 

[luke wilson]

I have felt really relaxed since then.

The one thing I've noticed is the difference in how 'shocks' feel. When I was in that tank, in the blankness of my mind, I felt the feelings of my emotion. In the pain of past experience, I felt the impact of shock which felt blunt. Since then, all the stuff that had me worried so greatly it all feels so blunt and not as sharp. There is a certain distant echo of acceptance to the inevitability of life that has led to a quietening of anxiety.

 

[luke wilson]

Had my 2nd session acouple of days ago... No longer feel relaxed. Sad is the word maybe. Sadly relaxed.

Nothing is beautiful about the darkness you encounter. You think your mind would light up, to reveal an internal universe that is otherwise shrouded by everyday chaos. But no, it appears the everyday chaos is there as a mask for the blankness and bleakness that lies underneath.

This whole experience has made me even more fascinated by sleep. I can now say that whilst sleeping, your mind connects to something completely different and that feeling you have is quite unique. Lying in this tank is not to dissimilar, except that your mind connects to nothing. Its blank with random thoughts placed there to hide the blankness. The darkness, blankness is quite overwhelming.

Sleep definitely has a value that cannot be replicated by a flotation tank. Staying awake also has its on value. This state of floating is like being caught in-between the 2 minus the whole hallucinatory in-between stage you feel when you actually get caught between sleep and being awake.

 

[luke wilson]

Had some more of this...

My experience

Overall good and over time you feel the effects. It's just nice to be in a place of silence, darkness, stillness. It relaxes you. That's the main thing. For me there really hasn't been any spiritual thing to it.

The strangest experience I had was my latest session. All the rest were somewhat similar. You get into the pod, you get comfortable and you have silence for an hour. Your mind flashes images and thoughts but you lie in rest, then the time is over. The time seems to fly by and an hour doesn't feel that long. Sometimes maybe I wish I could tag another extra 30 minutes at the end. Oh yes, you also get used to the darkness.

Today's session, I got in as usual, the lid came down, darkness descended but instead of stillness in the darkness, it felt like the inside of the pod was in motion and I was being thrust backwards. For a second I thought maybe my mind was playing tricks on me, so I stilled myself but I for sure felt like I was moving backwards fast. For a second I panicked big time, the inside of the pod was all of a sudden alive and I put my hands out to stop the motion, the fear of collision, the fear of movement that didn't seem to stop.

Then it stopped and I relaxed. I stilled myself and then came the usual images flashing by but this time they had force, each one would come like a truck and it'd hit you, and I would feel in my body feelings, feelings of these images. It didn't feel scary and I stayed there calmed down though at some point I thought maybe it'd be easy for something to happen in the pod, because all of a sudden it felt like a space I can't escape from, as it was enclosed. At one point I had to turn on the lights in the pod, when the feeling of movement came back. It felt like I was going far and the button was getting further from me, sticking out my hand to reach it.

Anyways the hour went by and I came out. It was an interesting one for sure. I had no idea what was happening in there.

I'd definitely recommend it as for me it's just relaxing and I like it for my back.

 

[Voyageur]

Had some more of this...

My experience
[...]
I'd definitely recommend it as for me it's just relaxing and I like it for my back.

Near were I live, people recently opened a place such as this. In fact, it was not soon after that you then wrote about this very experience, so thanks for the recommendation, will give it a try.