{"id":10990,"date":"2025-09-10T08:58:16","date_gmt":"2025-09-10T08:58:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/?p=10990"},"modified":"2025-09-10T08:58:17","modified_gmt":"2025-09-10T08:58:17","slug":"i-tried-float-therapy-so-you-dont-have-to","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/misc\/i-tried-float-therapy-so-you-dont-have-to\/","title":{"rendered":"I tried float therapy so you don’t have to"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

(But you might want to try this one!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Float<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\"Shower<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\n
\"Toiletries<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

My therapist is always telling me I need to take time to relax. No, that’s not the setup for one of those quirky The New Yorker<\/em> carto\u00f6ns, it’s the reality for those of us seeking treatment for insomnia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So far I’ve found that a quick meditation exercise here and there offers some limited relief. But I was already looking to take it a step further when I came across an intro deal at a local float therapy spa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I knew I had to give it a shot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Float tanks — also known as sensory deprivation tanks — are like oversized enclosed bathtubs filled with body temperature filtered salt water. The goal is to relax deeply with as little external stimulation as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The process is similar getting into a hot tub with a quick shower before and after. Since I had a private room I did this all in the nude, but swimwear is an option for those feeling prudish. I’d imagine anyone with long hair would probably want a shower cap or something similar to protect it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inside the tank you have to pull the lid closed, which is a bit tricky as you’ll start floating due to the buoyancy of the water the second you step into the thing. As you get situated, relaxing music plays for a couple minutes to get you in the mood. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the tank there’s a couple of floating pillows to try, as well as a spray bottle of fresh water and a washcloth to be used if you get the saltwater in your eyes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There’s a button to switch the color changing lights inside the pod off and on. In my pod at least it took a bit of pressure to activate, which sent me floating in the opposite direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the hour long session, you’re supposed to try and quiet your mind. The intro video suggested counting backwards from 300. I kept noticing my thoughts intruding and guiding them back to center on the countdown. Not that I made it very far, but it’s not a race.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The term “sensory deprivation” is surprisingly apt; it feels like nothing is under you, and due to the temperature of the water there’s very little sensation of physical contact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting out of the tank was a bit trickier than getting in due to being coated in a thick layer of slippery salt. After closing the lid I popped out the complementary earplugs, took a quick shower, and was good to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My first thought afterwards was: had it really been an hour? My watch said so, but the time absolutely flew by. I had the strangest sensation as though I’d somehow just taken a nap without falling asleep.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Would I do it again? At about $75 including the tip I probably would, assuming I got another discount offer. Perhaps that’s still expensive, but if going once and a while can help relieve insomnia it’s worth considering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(But you might want to try this one!) My therapist is always telling me I need to take time to relax. No, that’s not the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10991,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","slim_seo":{"title":"I tried float therapy so you don't have to - MrEricSir.com","description":"(But you might want to try this one!) My therapist is always telling me I need to take time to relax. No, that's not the setup for one of those quirky The New Y"},"autoblue_enabled":true,"autoblue_custom_message":"","autoblue_shares":[],"autoblue_post_url":"","autoblue_publish_document":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[1510,650,38,1511,1509],"class_list":["post-10990","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-misc","tag-float","tag-health","tag-photos","tag-sensory-deprivation","tag-spa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10990","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10990"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10990\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10999,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10990\/revisions\/10999"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10991"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10990"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10990"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mrericsir.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10990"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}