Since returning from Japan, my life has been a little… messy. It’s been a few weeks now and I’m still grappling to find that organised rhythm I was in before. I’ve fallen back into some bad habits, like going to bed late, exercising less, and procrastinating more, which has caused my ADHD to go a bit mental. I feel like I’m standing in the middle of a tornado, a million aspects of my life spinning around me at breakneck speed, moving way too chaotically for me to zero in on any of them.

I’ve been doing a lot of crazy things for this blog lately like buzzing my hair and getting tattoos, so what I need this week is to take things down a notch. I really enjoyed the ice bath I did a couple of months ago, and with the way my brain is feeling at the moment, I’d benefit from doing another wellness-related activity. Luckily, I know the perfect thing.

This week I: Tried float therapy.

For those wondering what on Earth float therapy is, the basic premise is that you enter a pod half-filled with very salty water, close the lid, and float for an hour in darkness. When I first heard of it, I saw it referred to as a ‘sensory deprivation tank’. If you ask me, that doesn’t sound entirely relaxing – more so pointless and claustrophobic.

About a year ago, however, a friend told me how his mum had tried float therapy, and thought it was fantastic. It was the first time I’d heard of the supposed benefits it has to offer – stress relief, creativity, euphoria, etc. I was intrigued; lord knows I could use a bit of that right now.

I booked into a place called Beyond Rest in Hawthorn East last Friday morning. I entered through two thick, opaque doors – to keep the good vibes in, I assume. And the vibes were indeed impeccable. Every architectural decision served to induce a sense of calm. The soft, white walls were lit dimly by an array of warm strip lights, hidden in crevices so as to not shine directly in anyone’s eyes. The cozy room was furnished with wooden accents and plants that hung from the ceiling, creating a natural vibe. Every edge was rounded, from the tables to the service desk. Even the walls sloped down to meet the floor – there wasn’t a corner in sight. I was instructed to remove my shoes as I entered, and the thick carpet that massaged my feet absorbed all noise other than the ambient vibrational music that quickly filled my mind. As I sank into a chair – I was 15 minutes early – I closed my eyes and took in the wonderfully intoxicating aroma of fresh herbal tea mixed with incense. I was already enjoying myself.

Just before I nodded off, a young lady approached and showed me to my private room. Inside was a shower and the pod itself, which looked more like an alien spacecraft than a bath, with the glowing blue light emanating from within to match. I was left alone, and the experience began.

I popped in my complimentary earplugs, and I was deaf. It was freaky. I could hear my bones squeaking around in my body, but nothing that originated from the outside world was audible. As I tentatively lowered myself into the pod, my legs were almost carried out from under me – it was that buoyant! I used to love floating at the beach as a kid, but that required a constant (even if only slight) effort to stay afloat. This was different; not a single muscle in my body was engaged.

The pod – about six feet wide, eight feet long, and four feet tall – was spacious, and I spent the first five minutes just bobbing around from side to side like the DVD logo. It was fun, playful, but I didn’t want to waste the experience, so I closed the lid and turned off the blue light. It faded out slowly then disappeared in an instant as if I had slipped into a black hole, leaving me in complete, incomprehensible darkness (at one point I realised I’d had my eyes open for about 20 minutes – I thought they’d been closed).

I started to understand the term ‘sensory deprivation tank’. By this point, I was effectively deaf and blind, and because I was lying completely still in skin-temperature water, I also couldn’t feel my body. Strangely, this wasn’t uncomfortable at all, nor was I claustrophobic as I had feared. With no external stimuli to focus on, my thoughts became my entire existence. I started to think about the current stresses in my life, but with my body fully relaxed, the sting was taken out of them. I considered them more objectively and was more willing to accept things I’d been trying to avoid. It was rather cathartic.

About 30 minutes in, I slipped into complete and utter oblivion – that state where you stop noticing things and let your mind travel with the current. You’re not quite asleep, but you’re no longer in control. I couldn’t even tell you what I was imagining during this time. All I know is that my leg twitched at one point, awakening me from my daze, and a minute later the music started playing to signal the end of my float (which I could more so feel the vibrations of than actually hear).

I climbed out of the pod and the lights slowly faded up. I removed my earplugs, and suddenly all my senses were restored. It was raw and over-stimulating; I wasn’t quite ready to re-enter the world yet.

Fortunately, after a long, hot shower, I was able to head to the dedicated post-float ‘chill-out space’. I grabbed a cup of herbal tea and disappeared into a couch. No phone, no book, no nothing. I just sat there. This was where the entire experience came together for me. Not only was I stupidly relaxed, I felt completely satiated. I’m usually running from one exciting thing to the next, with very little time to catch my breath. It’s a thrilling way to live, and I love it, but lately, I haven’t been finding enough of the quiet moments for my own good. As I sat there sipping my tea and looking curiously around the room, I felt satisfied, like I could’ve stayed there doing nothing for hours.

Float therapy didn’t change me as a person, and it’s too expensive for me to do regularly, but it was exactly what I needed. It slowed me down at a time when I felt everything was moving too fast, and I’m much more optimistic now about getting back into my usual routine.

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