I love the water. I love swimming, paddle boarding, and all things floating.
In fact, for as long as I can remember I’ve collected different floating devices for my family – floating mattresses, inflatable water rings, giant floating flowers (like the one pictured here on my head), and more. One of my bliss places has always been floating in water.
I deeply resonate with what Wallace J. Nichols author of Blue Mind: The Surprising Science That Shows How Being Near, In, On, or Under Water Can Make You Happier, Healthier, More Connected, and Better at What You Do says:
“We know instinctively that being by water makes us healthier, happier, reduces stress and brings us peace.”
This past year – I’ve been truly soaking up the healing power of water, and have upped my floating game – now I want to encourage you to do the same!
I went to Israel and floated in the Dead Sea and I became a member at Float Boston!
The Dead Sea was so fun, and deeply healing!
The salt content in the water is so high that it keeps you afloat, and the wonderful mud softens and nourishes the skin. It was a thrill.
But before I even got on the plane for Israel I did what I do every month….
I went to Float Boston, that’s my local floatation tank spot.
A floatation tank is a large, enclosed water tank that has loads of epsom salts, so it’s kind of like the dead sea – you float in it without any effort, and it’s kept at body temperature, so it’s a bit like floating cozy in space – in a really good way.
The whole point of floatation tanks are to help the body RELAX!
I go and float every month for 1 BIG reason…
It chills me out!!!
I’ll get into the science of why floats are so relaxing and healing in a moment, but for now, I want you to know that it’s not a momentary relaxation. I’m not only chilled out while I’m floating – the relaxation that floating brings impacts every part of my life – I feel happier, more at ease, more sensual and more clear minded when I float regularly.
There are 3 primary reasons why floatation tanks are so powerfully healing:
- THE SALT
Floatation tanks contain very high amounts of epsom salts (that’s what makes you float). Epsom salts contain high amounts of magnesium. Magnesium in an important mineral – which many of us are deficient in – that supports our muscles in relaxation. Magnesium also supports easy elimination – even when it’s absorbed through the skin. Basically magnesium = relaxed body.
If you don’t have a floatation tank or dead sea 🙂 nearby, adding 2 cups of epsom salts to your bath is a wonderful way to bring some of the benefits into your own home.
2. THE STIMULATION-VACATION
Floatation tanks are dark and quiet. There are no phones, or screens or music in there. Our brain desperately needs a vacation from stimulation in our ramped up world. Taking a break from all stimulation lowers cortisol levels and lowers our stress.
3. THE BUOYANCY
The act of floating is a primal, in-utero feeling. When we’re floating, we don’t have to hold up any part of our body. There is no efforting, and our body gets to remember what it is to be truly at ease. Folks with chronic pain report great relief in floatation tanks. I feel the positive impact of the buoyancy in a way that it reminds my whole system – body and mind – to stop trying so hard. It’s like every moment of buoyancy reminds me and my being to simply let go!
Being reminded on a cellular level to fully let go, every month, is a reset for me. It gets me back to the place that I want to live from – an expansive and relaxed state.
And, just in case you’re thinking that Floatation tanks are only for woo-woo wellness junkies like me 🙂 that’s not true at all.
If you are like the women who I work with – smart and busy women who are wanting to stop the war with their body and food – a float is definitely for you. Giving yourself this kind of deep relaxation impacts your relationship with your body. and by extension, supports you in making healthier and more conscious food choices
Floating is also good for the whole family!
I brought both my mom and my son to Float Boston when they came back from traveling, to help profoundly restore their bodies, and mitigate their jet lag. They both loved it.
I once read that being in a float tank is equivalent to 4 hours of sleep.
And, I put that statement to the test. One day when I had woken up super-duper early to catch a flight – and was about 4 hours short on my sleep – I went in for a float. Sure enough, I felt totally refreshed, as if I’d had a full night’s sleep.
Each of my monthly floats have been slightly different. Sometimes I drifted off to sleep (and no, you can’t drown in 
there). Other times, I’ve just blissed out with deep calm. Yet other times, my mind was so busy that I didn’t feel the full effect of relaxation until I got out and sat with a post-float cup of tea…then the powerful stress-relieving effects kicked in.
There’s no “right-way” to float. There is only your way!
If you’re intrigued, I highly suggest trying it! Be sure to check out a floatation tank in your neighborhood. And if you’re in the Boston area, I have a special offer from the wonderful folks at Float Boston! They are offering my peeps (that’s you!) a special coupon that will give you 10% off a 90-minute float or a Beginner’s Package. Use the code: NM2015.
Here’s the fine print: It’s one per person, the code expires December 31st, and credits bought with the code won’t expire for a year.
I’d love to hear about your floating experiences!!!
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Nina Manolson, MA, CHC, certified Health Coach and Psychology of Eating Coach believes that every women deserves to feel good in their own body. She helps women create a healthy and positive relationship with their food and body so they can love their body and life! She’s the founder of NinaManolson.com and NourishedWomanNation.com
She helps busy women look and feel their best. She specializes in working with women over 40 who have tried other diets and approaches but are still struggling with their body and food. She helps women step into a new wellness paradigm that makes it real and do-able and makes self-care a sustainable healthy habit.
She’s the author of “Feed Your Kids Well In A World That Doesn’t: an everyday guide to make healthy food happen in your home and beyond”. She’s also the recipient of the prestigious Health Leadership Award from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.
To get your F.R.E.E. Video Series “What to do now, when everything you’ve done hasn’t worked” by mail and receive her healthy recipes and wellness tips click here.
Nina Manolson, MA, is the founder of Body-Peace®.She helps women end the war with food and body and finally feel truly at home in their body—as it is.
She is known for her deeply feminist, anti-diet, body-peace® approach. She brings her 30 years of experience as a therapist, Body-Trust® Guide and Psychology of Eating Teacher to helping women create a respectful and trusting relationship with their food and body.
Nina’s Body-Peace® work is all in service of helping people get off the diet roller-coaster, and into a compassionate and powerful way of eating & living which creates a positive long-lasting change in and with their bodies. Her courses, coaching, poems and Body-Peace APP positively change the conversation that women are having with their body.
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