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Just Went Too Quickly
Floatation Tank
Citation:   BlinkStefaans. "Just Went Too Quickly: An Experience with Floatation Tank (exp56783)". Erowid.org. Oct 24, 2006. erowid.org/exp/56783

 
BODY WEIGHT: 67 kg
It was the start of the weekend and I made a booking at a spa to see if the Floatation tank hype was all that. My mindset was non-biased and open. After the owner explained to me the ropes of the Floatation tank, I went to take a shower.

After the shower I plugged my ears and climbed in. The water was body temperature and precisely like they described. I closed the door behind me and stared into the pitch black void. The tank I was floating in was quite large, about 2m X 2m, so I floated with my arms stretched out. At first my arm was at my side but that only made my neck stiffer so I decided to stretch them out. This worked like a charm.

For the first 10 minutes they played soft instrumental music to calm you, but it was more a distraction then an aid. The music stopped end everything was dark and quiet. This was a very weird feeling, no weight, no sound and no vision.

At first it was really difficult to just switch off, my mind was racing with a lot of thoughts. I would strongly recommend any type of focus meditation as this helped me to focus my experience on just relaxing. After my thoughts were made quiet, it felt as if I went into a dream like state, this state was extremely mild, but it was there. During this stage it felt that I was pulled into my dream while still awake. This part did not last too long. At this point I cannot remember what happened, but all of a sudden my hour was done and the music started playing again, it was time to get out.

When the music started I was much disoriented, this quickly returned back to normal the moment I took a shower.

The aftereffects kick in immediately when I left the room. My whole body felt relaxed beyond words. I stepped out of the room and walked to the garden, poured me a glass of water and just admired the view. Usually I never notice details, but after the float it seemed that the world exploded with fine details, birds flying in the distance, the wind blowing through the trees and various other sensations that I totally forgot I had. I would truly recommend this to anyone.

Just a note of caution: The next day I woke up with an upset stomach and it lasted for most of the day. At first I thought it was something I ate, but after asking Google I came across some Epsom salt facts (This is the salty solution in the float tank in which you float). An overexposure to Epsom salt can cause dihorrea. Epsom salt exposure is not recommended for people with kidney problems.

Besides this I would truly recommend this experience and will definitely try it again.

Exp Year: 2006ExpID: 56783
Gender: Not Specified 
Age at time of experience: Not Given
Published: Oct 24, 2006Views: 14,045
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Floatation Tank (369) : Hangover / Days After (46), First Times (2), Alone (16)

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Experience Reports are the writings and opinions of the authors who submit them. Some of the activities described are dangerous and/or illegal and none are recommended by Erowid Center.


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