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What is a flotation and what are the benefits?
What happens during a float session?
Experiences you may have during a float.
Floating at Willow Trading.
What is a flotation and what are the benefits?
Flotation involves lying on your back on 10 inches of a warm water which is loaded with Epsom salts.
The solution is warmed to skin temperature and is so dense that you float effortlessly. The room is
insulated against light and sound providing a profoundly restful and stress relieving environment.
The flotation tank simply restricts or eliminates environmental stimulation - the combined
effects of gravity, temperature, touch, sight, and sound on the muscles, nervous system, sense organs,
and brain. Freed from the workload created by these external stimuli, body and mind enter profoundly
deep levels of relaxation.
A flotation tank is a small pool - 8 feet long by 4 feet wide by 7 feet high. In the
pool is 200 lbs. of water and 1000 lbs. of dissolved Epsom salt. Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate, and
is very different than the kind of salt we eat. Epsom salt has been used for centuries for its many health
benefits. According to the Epsom Salt Industry Council of the US, when magnesium sulfate is absorbed through
the skin it draws toxins from the body, sedates the nervous system, reduces swelling, and relaxes muscles.
Epsom salt is a natural skin emollient, skin exfoliator, and much more. And in a float tank, there's no
"prune skin" effect that you get when you lie in the bathtub for a long time.
The water in a floatation tank is only 10 inches deep, and is kept at 35.7 degrees centigrade,
which is the temperature of your skin. The pool is enclosed so that the front of your body (the part that's
floating above the water) doesn't get cold. The saltwater is so dense that you float like a cork. This is
particularly enjoyable for people who have difficulty floating in a swimming pool. Because you're perfectly
balanced, you can't flip over accidentally, so feel free to doze off. The feeling of weightlessness
cannot be described. It must be experienced to be fully appreciated.
Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy or REST is a phrase coined in the early 1980s by
researcher Dr Peter Suedfeld (University of British Columbia, Vancouver) to describe the physical process that
underlies flotation, and to replace earlier terms such as sensory deprivation or sensory isolation that were
scientifically inaccurate and highly negative.
Most people enjoy floating for the relaxation that it brings but there are many other
benefits and scientific research in to the effects of floating has confirmed the following :
- Floating energises, rejuvenates and revitalises.
- Floating has been known to alleviate jet lag, fatigue, mental and/or physical stress.
- Floating removes stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline.
- Floating can help create mental clarity, alertness and increased creativity.
- Floating helps problem solving, expands awareness, and is successfully used for auto suggestion,
for example in learning foreign languages.
- Floating helps combat depression, anxiety and fear.
- Floating boosts motivation, confidence and performance and is used in facilitating rehabilitation
from alcoholism, drug addiction, eating disorders and phobias.
- Floating regularly helps athletic performance, and helps prevent sports injuries. It is also known
to speed up healing.
- Floating relieves arthritis, migraines, backaches, injuries, muscle strain and over exertion by
releasing endorphins (the body's own natural painkillers).
- Floating increases circulation and distribution of oxygen and nutrients; reduces blood pressure,
pulse, and heart rate; and is also helpful with PMS.
For more information on the benefits and effects of floating please have a look
at www.floatforhealth.net
Float sessions at Willow Trading are available every day with evening appointments on
Wednesday and Thursday. A single
session costs £30 and a course of
3 sessions costs £60. A couple of times a year we run a “buy one get one free offer”.
If you would like to be informed when this offer is on please join our
confidential mailing list.
Top of Page
What happens during a float session?
Before you book your first float you may like know more about what is involved.
A float session lasts an hour which includes the time spent showering and dressing. This means
that you will be floating for approximately fifty minutes.
After checking in at the reception you will be shown into the private Flotation Suite.We go
through everything that you need to know before we leave you to enjoy your float but here is a brief guide
in case you would like to familiarise yourself with the procedure beforehand:
- Please undress and remove any jewellery.
- If you have any cuts or grazes that would sting in the salty water you can cover them over with
the Vaseline provided.
- Put in the ear plugs. They are foam and need to be squeezed into a point before being inserted.
They take a few moments to expand to give a good fit therefore we recommend that you put them in before
you have a shower.
- Have a quick shower
- Step into the Flotation Room and close the door. The door must be kept closed throughout the session as
it stops the Flotation Room from becoming too cold, for you and the other floaters that day.
- Lie down so that the door is on the left hand side. The water, which is heated to body temperature,
is absolutely loaded with salt and will give you complete buoyancy. You will experience a very pleasant
feeling of weightlessness.
- Music will be playing to help ease you into the session. It will be turned off after a few minutes.
- Position yourself in the centre of the space and lie still. Resist the temptation to hold your head up.
Just relax and let your head fall back. Your ears will be under the water (hence the ear plugs) but your
face will always stay dry. Tensing the muscles in your neck can cause discomfort. If you have difficulty
relaxing your neck just put your hands under your head until you feel relaxed enough to take them away.
- Enjoy your float!
- When the music comes back on it is time to come out. Take your time sitting up and be careful not to
get salt in your eyes. Step out of the Flotation Room and close the door behind you.
- Have another shower to wash off the salt. We provide hair/body wash, conditioner and towels.
You may wish to bring brush, comb, deodorant etc.
- Please dress before moving into the waiting area. Help yourself to a drink of water and use the hair
dryer if you wish.
- Try and sit for at least ten minutes before you make your way back upstairs. This is important
if you wish to get the maximum benefits from your float. Please allow this extra time when planning
your visit.
The benefits of floating are cumulative so you may wish to take advantage of our reduced rate
course of 3 sessions for £60. Click here
to buy or call 0141 339 6446.
Top of Page
Experiences you may have during a float.
When stress is released slowly during a float you hardly notice it but when it happens rapidly
you may experience it in a number of different ways.
Sensations of spinning around, rising up, sinking, rotating, standing up or being upended.
Any sensation of moving when you aren't actually moving indicates rapid psychological stress release.
Active, unrelated thoughts whether for a few seconds or the whole float indicates rapid, mental
stress release. Afterwards you may feel sharper, lighter or slightly spaced out.
Experiencing emotions such as sadness, fear, anger, irritation, happiness etc. This relates to rapid
emotional stress release. Many people store up a lot of their feelings rather than expressing them.
By letting go of our emotions we can feel more at peace with ourselves.
Twitches, shakes, starts, jerks etc. in any part of the body usually indicate rapid physical stress release
from the nervous system. Soreness in the neck and shoulders when floating is a strong indication of
accumulated stress unless caused by an injury.
Feeling nauseous. This is a rare experience which is related to very powerful emotional stress release.
The remaining experiences include several relating to deep relaxation:
- Experiencing a state of timelessness.
- Being conscious but having no thoughts. "I went somewhere but I don't think I was asleep",
"the time passed so quickly, I couldn't believe my time was up". Anyone who feels like this has
experienced a state of very deep relaxation which allows for the rapid release of stress. At times jerks,
emotions or thoughts etc. may bring you out of this deep state and you may drift in and out of it
for the course of the float.
Experiencing vivid memories, pictures, colours etc. When in deep relaxation the right
hemisphere of the brain which is the creative and intuitive side is stimulated. This in itself is very
valuable and will be beneficial to creative thought after the float session. Sometimes the stimulation
will induce images, colours, memories etc.
Gaining realisations or sudden answers. This is the subconscious working through the
right hemisphere of the brain. The deeper you go the more likely this is to happen.
Short periods of restlessness, impatience or boredom when you are unable to "get into the float".
This may happen from time to time during your first few floats. It is nothing to worry about.
Not settling down, feeling bored and restless or feeling quite indifferent to the experience.
This happens very occasionally and it may take one or two floats before you are fully able to relax into it.
Even so, your subconscious mind will benefit from the float and you should feel the effects afterwards.
Controlled normal thoughts. Rational organised thinking. The tank is the ideal place to do
some uninterrupted thinking. This may result in decisions which had previously been difficult to make.
Top of Page
Floating at Willow Trading
The sessions are at set times throughout the day.
From Monday to Saturday: 9.30, 10.45, 12.00, 1.15, 2.30, 3.45 and 5.00.
Extra sessions on Wednesday and Thursday: 6.15 pm and 7.30 pm
Sunday sessions at: 12.00, 1.15, 2.30 and 3.45
Each float session lasts an hour. There is a 15 minutes gap between sessions so that we can prepare
the room for the next person.
To make an appointment please call 0141 339 6446 or call in to the shop. Please note that we are
unable to take bookings by E mail.
Floats cost £30 for a single
session. A course of 3 sessions
costs £60.
A couple of times a year we run a “buy one get one free offer”. If you would like to be informed
when this offer is on please give your email address to our reception or join our confidential
mailing list.
Gift vouchers are available for the Flotation
Room and we also sell general gift vouchers
that can be used for any of the treatments including the Flotation Room. All Willow Trading vouchers come
beautifully gift wrapped and are valid for 12 months. To purchase vouchers please come in to the shop,
call 0141 339 6446 or click on the links above.
Willow Trading 715 Great Western Road Hillhead Glasgow G12 8QX, telephone 0141 339 6446 |
