THIS Therapy Will Change How You See Meditation and Mindfulness
Have you ever wondered how it would feel to be floating in space?
What would you be thinking, if nothing really mattered?
Well, you don’t have to actually go to the space, or join the Guardians of the Galaxy to get that experience.
I recently had my first float therapy experience, and I’m sharing the process, my thoughts, and my experience from a first-time user and music therapist perspective.
Never heard of float therapy?
Watch this REEL here I created 👀
What Is Float Therapy?
By lying in a warm pool filled with Epsom salts, you enter a state of deep relaxation and you let your body (and mind) resolve into nothingness. It claims to heal the body (by releasing tension) and reduce stress and anxiety. But like working out and meditation, you have to do it consistently to reap the benefits.
My First Float Therapy Experience
I imagined that I would be more nervous. Floating alone in a dark room without music – could I handle that? As a productive nerd, how would I let myself “do nothing” for an hour?
It was a very curious sensation. While I let my body relax, I noticed that I let my mind wander the whole time. I paid attention to every body sensation, my breathing and my train of thoughts.
I felt weightless. Relaxed. Like the world didn’t exist anymore and there was just little me floating in space (no jokes, I had visions of that similar to galaxy in Marvel movies).
There were times when I was thinking about work – precisely my creative projects. There were times when I was wondering how that would feel like if I came here with someone. But then, I caught myself and redirected my thoughts to my breathing and just being there.
Being immersed in the moment.
Maybe that is what mindfulness is all about.
Let your brain and your heart catch up with each other.
I was not thinking about nothing.
I was just being there, paying attention to the occasional rippling of the water, the weightlessness of my limbs, my breathing, and the silence ringing in my ears underwater.
Just being mindful of what I’m thinking and feeling in the moment.
That didn’t come easily. I’ve spent years training my brain to wander less and focus on one thing at a time. It’s still a work in progress, and of course there were times when I thought about my neverending to-do list first thing in the morning.
Meditation cultivates mindfulness by training attention.
As my awareness expanded, so was the satisfaction in life.
Maybe this is the way to live life to its fullest. 🌱
P.S. I got the option to choose whether I wanted the lights and the music on or not. Thanks to my profession I was a bit skeptical with the music at first, but here’s my personal view:
- I generally prefer complete darkness
- darkness + music = visualisation
- darkness – music = mind clutter
^ I wrote these thoughts down immediately after shower (you gotta believe in the power of pen and paper and ditch your notetaking app sometimes ;))
Funnily enough, I did not feel uncomfortable floating in complete silence and darkness and I suspected that had something to do with the fact that I was very familiar with my own inner voice. That being said, if you’re interested in trying float therapy, take baby steps and explore your options. I understand that some sensations (or the lackof) would trigger some people. But it’s overall very interesting and relaxing and I wouldn’t mind going every now and then.