Those who are closest to me know, but I haven’t been very public in my writing about it. I have an autoimmune disease called Sjogren’s Syndrome. It makes me tired, like WIPED OUT tired sometimes, but I don’t want to get into that now. I’ll go into that another time. But, this disease was somewhat of a gift. I had to learn that I, the person who felt there was no such thing as working “too hard,” had her limits. For a long time, I have been researching unique forms of therapy. My dear friend, Lindsay, sent me information about float therapy one day.
Y’all. I am hooked.
Picture this: (I am going to lay it out from my point of view.) Yo Gabba Gabba is blaring in the background of one room, a random YouTube Kids channel has an annoying family yelling about “the world’s largest gummy worm” in another room, an elderly dog is barking nonstop at the door (he figured out he can do what he wants now that he is old), customers are emailing and employees are asking questions. That’s a normal day. All…the…noise.
Now, picture this. I leave my reality for a moment and head to a float spa. There, I find a tiny pod as shown above. It is exactly like what is shown above…only you close the top like this.
Inside this pod is shallow water with 1,100 lbs of Epsom salt. Why? The salt at this concentration makes you completely buoyant. Gravity does not exist. But that’s not all. You have earplugs to put in and all of the lights inside the pod and in the room turn off. The water is the temperature of the body, so it feels as though it is not there. That means…complete and total sensory deprivation.
Let me take a second to say, this description would normally sound like Hell to me. I love to talk to people, I love to hear people’s thoughts, and bird’s chirping, and all the flowery, sugary things in life.
I can honestly say, going from the chaos of my normal life to complete, still, NOTHING for one hour…the results are mind-blowing.
I have “floated” three times now: twice in a pod, once in a tank. I am definitely a fan of a pod style float. If you are local, I suggest Float Carolina. It’s all the way in Waxhaw, NC, but well worth the hike. I go in feeling a little scattered or worn out. It amazes me what a one-hour sensory deprivation experience does. I walk out with rosy cheeks, no dark circles under my eyes, and a cheery, clear outlook on everything.
I know it sounds bizarre, but give it a try. Just make sure you try the right place and style for yourself.