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All you need to know about Floatation tank therapy (Sensory deprivation tank)

Sensory deprivation tank therapy may support relaxation, improve sleep, and decrease stress, anxiety, and pain. It may have other health benefits as well.

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A floatation tank is a lightless, soundless tank filled with highly concentrated Epsom salt water heated to skin temperature. Floatation, also known as sensory deprivation, is simply the act of relaxing in a floatation tank; with all sights and sounds removed, and drifting into a meditative state that rejuvenates your mind and body.

 This Tank has various names which includes; isolation tank, sensory deprivation tank, float tank, flotation tank, float pod and even a sensory attenuation tank.


History:

The flotation tank was first invented in 1954 by neuroscientist and psychologist John C Lilly to explore human consciousness.

He wanted to experiment with sensory deprivation and discover what would happen if the brain was deprived of senses and all external stimulation.

The first tank he invented involved wearing a diving mask to block out light and sound whilst completely submerged in an upright chamber filled with water.

Lilly also experimented with psychedelic drugs whilst in the isolation tank and even claimed that the tank allowed him to make contact with creatures from other dimensions.

He refined his tank in the following years and by the 1970s float tanks started to move closer towards the modern float tanks we see today.


Sensory deprivation is the removal of stimuli from the senses. At the most basic level, a blindfold or earplugs are a form of sensory deprivation. In a float tank, sight and sounds are removed. The air and water are also heated to skin temperature so it becomes impossible to know where your skin ends and the water begins. At the same time, you are floating.

Floating in a tank creates the perfect conditions for removing all external stimuli. This is the sensory deprivation element. Your vision is restricted in the pitch black, you can hear nothing but your own body. You are completely buoyant in the Epsom salt water. This leads to a feeling of zero gravity with no real concept of up, down, time or space. The water and air are heated to body temperature so you are unsure where your body ends and the water begins.

Floatation Therapy:

The science of sensory deprivation is known as Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy (REST). REST in a float tank has shown a transition from alpha or beta brainwaves to theta, which would ordinarily only occur before sleep and waking. In a flotation tank, theta brain waves occur whilst the user is fully conscious. For many users, this allows for great creativity and problem-solving.


There is also evidence of physical benefits including reduced blood pressure, cortisol (the stress hormone) and improvements to blood flow. REST is also used by many athletes who claim enhanced recovery and performance.

 It is a dark, soundproof tank that is filled with a foot or less of salt water.

How is the therapy done?

The process: 

You arrive at the flotation center or spa, remove all of your clothing and jewelry, shower before entering the tank. Enter the tank and close the door or lid, gently lie back and let the buoyancy of the water help you float, music plays for 10 minutes at the start of your session to help you relax, float for an hour, music plays for the last five minutes of your session.Why you need a waterproof audio transducer for your boat, sauna and float tank 

Get out of the tank once your session has ended, shower again and get dressed.

Shaving or waxing before a session is not recommended as the salt in the water can irritate the skin.

To help you relax and get the most out of your session, it is recommended that you eat something around 30 minutes before your session. It’s also helpful to avoid caffeine for four hours beforehand.


How floating is achieved

Floating is achieved by adding a high concentration of Epsom salts to the water. Much like in the Dead Sea this raises the density and buoyancy of the water.

Float tanks will use around 1000 litres of water and 550 kg of magnesium and sulphate-rich Epsom salts thereby increasing the specific gravity for the solution to around 1.27.

It is this change to the density that adds buoyancy to the water and allows a flotation tank user to float.


Epsom Salts

Epsom salts allow the float tank user to float but also do so much more. Ancient wisdom tells us that Epsom salts are an effective cure-all with benefits including stress relief along with easing aches and pains.

Epsom salts are rich in magnesium, which is the second most abundant element in the human body and one that is vital to good health and well being. When floating, the Epsom salt solution helps with lymph drainage and promotes the absorption of magnesium.


Research shows that raising magnesium may have the following results:

Detoxification – Flushes toxins and heavy metals from the cells in the body. This in turn helps ease muscle pain and clear out harmful substances picked up from our modern environment.

Diabetes – Improved insulin sensitivity aids blood glucose control which can aid in prevention or severity of diabetes.

Heart Health – Improves heart and circulatory health. Preventing hardening of the arteries, blood clots and lowering overall blood pressure.

Bone health – Magnesium helps assimilate calcium into the bones.

Relieve stress – Excess adrenaline and stress are believed to drain magnesium, a natural stress reliever, from the body. Magnesium helps bind serotonin, the happy hormone!

Relaxation – Elevates chemicals in the brain that works to create a feeling of well-being and relaxation.

Migraines – Eases and prevents migraine headaches.


When using a float tank the magnesium is absorbed through the skin and the body 


Over the years Floatation tanks have increased in popularity

Their increase in popularity may be due in part to the scientific research which suggests time spent floating in a sensory deprivation tank may have some benefits in healthy people, decrease in pain, and decreased stress and anxiety, such as muscle relaxation, better sleep.


Benefits

Floatation can benefit everyone, from athletes and creatives to business people, the elderly, and those with medical issues. Floatation is a form of alternative medicine and boasts an extensive wealth of benefits which include;

Helps with pregnancy pain

Increases blood circulation and lowers blood pressure

Improves immunity

Helps athletes produce less cortisol, adrenaline, and lactic acid

Helps athletes visualise their performance for success

Enhances mental clarity and deepens your mental state

Improves self-realisation and discovery

Helps with anxiety, depression, and motivation

Helps with phobias and addiction

Helps with PTSD symptoms

Decreases the perception of pain

Relieves bones, joints, muscles

Relieves aches, pains, and strains

Relieves arthritis, migraines, and rheumatism

Relieves fibromyalgia

Helps athletes master the inner game and synchronise mind, body, and emotion

Reduces the risk of further injury and overtraining

Resets the body’s chemical & metabolic balance

Speeds up the healing process and recovery

Improves concentration and focus

Improves athletic performance 

improves cardiovascular health

Stimulates the release of endorphins

Creates calm and total relaxation

Rejuvenates the mind and body

Alleviates mental and physical stress

Helps with fatigue and jet lag

Improves sleep and insomnia

Improves creativity, healing, and visualisation

Expands awareness and heightens senses

 Improves Creativity:

According to an article published in 2014 in the European Journal of Integrative Medicine, floating in a sensory deprivation tank has been found in a handful of studies to increase originality, imagination, and intuition, which can all lead to enhanced creativity.

Effects of Sensory deprivation 

The water in a sensory deprivation tank is heated to skin temperature and nearly saturated with Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate), providing buoyancy so you float more easily.

You enter the tank nude and are cut off from all outside stimulation, including sound, sight, and gravity when the tank’s lid or door is closed. As you float weightless in the silence and darkness, the brain is supposed to enter into a deeply relaxed state.


Sensory deprivation tank therapy is said to produce several effects on the brain, ranging from hallucinations to enhanced creativity.


Some people have reported having hallucinations in a sensory deprivation tank. Over the years, studies have shown that sensory deprivation does induce psychosis-like experiences.


A 2015 study divided 46 people into two groups based on how prone they were to hallucinations. Researchers found that sensory deprivation induced similar experiences in both the high- and low-prone groups, and it increased the frequency of hallucinations in those in the high-prone group.

Sensory deprivation tank and therapy cost

The cost for a one-hour float session at a flotation center or float spa ranges from about $50 to $100, depending on the location.

Your sensory deprivation tank can cost between $10,000 and $30,000. This estimate is applicable when using great materials.



Credits: 1)Healthline 

               2)i-sopod 


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