There are many way’s to relax, and yesterday I tested a new form of it for me, floating.

As a birthday gift my wife bought me a giftcard to Float Kallio. (info video in finnish ) As people close to me knows I have suffered from irregular sleep now for many years. There is no “I usually sleep” as the time varies between 3 hours and 7 hours. The time’s I’ve taken a sleeping pill the amount of hours can go up to 8~10, but as all know, sleeping pill sleep is not the normal state, and not recommended for long time use.

So my wonderful wife found this Float Kallio and bought a gift card for me, and yesterday I went to the first of three visits. First of all I want to give kudos to Float Kallio for the ease of getting the reservation. You go to their webpage, reserve a time, and they add the gift card to your online registration account. You do not need to prepare or take anything with you, you just go to the place. The entrance to the facility is inconspicuous. Once in, you get a pair of slippers, and sit down for you turn. 10 minutes before is recommended time to be in before your turn.

Once the room is ready for you, the personnel guides you to your room. You take a shower, stick in some earbuds, and enter the tank. Close the lid and your set to go, or more precisely, stay still floating and empty your brain for complete relaxation.

This time I had the “black room” with a black interior and black tank.

The introduction found on Float Kallio’s homepage is very good and gives you a good picture of what it’s actually is all about.

FLOATING

…is a way to pause the hectic, saturated world and enter a state of deep mental and physical relaxation. In sensory deprived zero gravity environment you are totally free of distractions. Your muscles can relax completely, your mind can become quiet and still, and you can achieve a feeling of weightlessness and relaxation that cannot be found elsewhere.

The tank is not deep. The depth of the water is 40 cm (about 15 inches) and contains 550 kg (1 212 lbs) of Epsom salt. Either you have never been floating before or not, there is no worry about staying afloat. The water and air in the tank is skin warm, so it’s not like being in a sauna, nor do get cold. Although for some reason I had a cramp at one point in my right leg.

One thing I struggled with now and then was to relax the neck muscles. At some point’s i found myself tensing the neck muscles, because it can be hard to just let go and trust the floating of the head. Another thing I struggled with was the lying on my back. I always sleep on either side, so there was many moments I wanted to turn to my side, but as the salt can irritate the eyes, that is not recommended, or even possible.

In Float Kallio they play soothing music for the first 10 minutes to get in a good state of mind for upcoming relaxation, and the last 5 minutes, to let you know your time is coming to the end. The light inside the tank can be turned off, and they recommended it so that there would be nothing stimulating the mind once in the pod. 

After the floating session you shower of and there is nice shampoo and shower gel to use. Your skin feels great after the shower, and once out of the room there is a nice lounge area to relax in. You get offered coffee or tea without charge. There is also the possibility to buy for example coconut water. The soaps used in the shower can also be bought.

One session is 90 minutes, which of you are floating for 60. After a busy day at the office, this is a good way to zero the stress and get your mind off work.

I did not have many expectations beforehand. One thing was the part of floating as I’ve never managed to do that before in regular water, but that was no problem. As a first experience I enjoyed it very much. I’m eager for the remaining two times and I recommend this for everybody.