Floatin’ Is All That I Want To Do

^^Reference to the Little Big Town “Pontoon” lyrics!

Have you ever heard of flotation for wellness? We have a center here in Cville called Aquafloat that offers floating, massages, and an infrared sauna. I’ve been wanting to try floating out for a while, and Thomas got me a combo massage + float gift certificate for my birthday.

The float “pods” are filled with 12 inches of water heated to around 93.5 degrees – skin temperature. Dissolved into the water are 850 pounds of Epsom salts. Back in my public relations days, I used to work with the Epsom Salt Council, so I can tell you there are hundreds of benefits to soaking in Epsom salts! There are so many dissolved salts in this water that you are completely buoyant and float on top of the water. You can close the lid to the pod, turn off the light, and have a totally sensory-free experience that leads to complete relaxation. You don’t have to close the lid or turn out the light, but it’s recommended.

{The water is actually clear – the cleaning jets were on when I took this picture.}

Float sessions are 90 minutes long (but you can leave earlier if you want to.) I had a 45-minute massage first and then my float session after that. The float rooms are like an extra large bathroom with the pod on one side and a sink and rainshower on the other.

It was kind of weird taking off my robe and climbing in, but I was so curious about this experience!

The first thing I noticed was that the water was not that hot. I love being hot, and I might even say this water was not even warm. It was still 93.5 degrees, but it wasn’t like stepping into a hot bath. The water was also very slippery, kind of like a watery gel. I suppose it’s from all the salt! I put in the wax ear plugs that they provided and let my hair down. I wanted to be as submerged as possible.

The first 15 minutes were fun. I “swam” around and played with the water. It was really cool to float! I wasn’t really cold, but I wasn’t hot either. I am fairly claustrophobic and being in the pod didn’t feel so bad at all. My arms had full range of motion, so I could spread out like a snow angel, and I knew I could bust open the lid if needed. You can leave it all the way open or just cracked open if you are particularly claustrophobic, but I closed the lid to keep as warm as I could.

After playing for a while, I decided to turn off the light and try to take a nap. In the beginning I felt like 90 minutes was an eternity and knew if I didn’t nap it would go slowly! I would really recommend going in the late afternoon (when you are nap-ready) for this reason. When my ears were submerged, I could hear every creak and breath in my body. If my stomach gurgled, it was loud! My breaths in and out were loud too, and they were soothing. I could even hear my heart! I put my arms out like a football field goal and relaxed. The water temperature started to even out when I stopped moving and I was no longer a little bit chilly. I did some of those falling-asleep twitches a few times and “woke up”, and once I made a funny snoring sound!

After a period of time, which could have been 20 or 60 minutes, I “woke up.” I say this with quotes because I wasn’t entirely sure that I actually fell asleep. The man at the desk told me we often go into a steady state of brain waves that is neither awake nor asleep when sensory distractions are removed. But, when I “woke up” I was very alert. I had salt crusted all over the front of my body, which was pretty cool. It sort of felt like shards of glass, and I washed it off with more water. I was also ready to get out! At the 90-minute mark, gentle music starts to play to let you know the time is up, and I was getting a bit antsy to hear the music. I played around in the water a little, but most of all I had to go to the bathroom! I was literally reaching for the handle to get out when the music started. I really wanted to stay in for the full 90 minutes for the full experience, so I was very happy that I had done that!

Thinking back on it, if I explored and played around in the beginning for about 15 minutes and maybe another 10 after becoming alert again at the end, then I had to have slept for about an hour. That is crazy!

I took a nice hot shower and got dressed in one of the vanity rooms. They have everything you need to get ready – towels, shampoo, conditioner, soap, and hair dryers.

I would absolutely do this again, and it was totally relaxing. It would be perfect for people who have trouble shutting off their brains (like me), moms who are sleep deprived, pregnant woman (the buoyancy!), or athletes with sore muscles. I mean, really, everyone would benefit from this experience.

One thing I did learn was that you can have the water heated (or cooled) +/- a degree or two. They can’t heat it like a hot tub because you couldn’t stay in long enough, but a degree or two for sure. You just have to request that in advance. I will be doing that next time! The water temperature was my only complaint.

Thomas had one very similar to mine, and when we compared notes he was shaking his head “yes” to everything I reported. Have you ever heard of or tried flotation for wellness? I’d love to hear about your experiences!

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