I tried Float Therapy and this is my experience

Forget the socks and jocks, this year for Father’s Day, I was gifted a ‘Float’ at a well established floating centre, City Cave.

If, like me, you’ve been asking, what is floating? I can now tell you. Floating is a form of sensory deprivation, a type of therapy that is designed to reduce stress and anxiety by putting your body into a complete meditative state. The float therapy involves laying in a pod filled with a large amount of epsom salts – 400kg to be exact.

Going into health and spa centre’s is not a facility I’m comfortable or had any experience with. I went in with a totally open mind and a determination to embrace the experience. When I arrived, the staff were lovely and gently explained the entire process to me. After watching an introductory video, I was shown to my float room. From there, it’s a quick shower and straight into the float.

The float room is a beautifully appointed room, with a pool the size of a double bed. Now they recommend you float nude and I embraced it entirely. Clothing will only create unnecessary stimuli to your skin – so ditch the swimmers.

The pool is warmed to your body temperature, making it easy to get in and settled. Now all there is to do is lay back and float for the next hour. Amazingly, the epsom salts create so much buoyancy and allows your body to naturally float on the surface of the water. It’s recommended that you turn the lights off but if pitch black darkness isn’t your thing, you can leave the lights on. The darkness adds to the experience and allows your body and mind to really relax into the moment. 

With my first float done, the question remains, is it beneficial? Based on one experience, I found it lived up to its promises of delivering a period of sensory deprivation and allowed me to unwind and relax. Like anything, going back for a few sessions will definitely see the true benefits.

Oh and they also have an infrared sauna that I’m keen to try at my next visit.

If you’re interested in giving floating a go, a single float is $79. But why not take your partner and enjoy a couples float for $94.