While in Connecticut, I got the opportunity to try Float Therapy. It was something I had been wanting to do for about a year, after first hearing of it while I was in Milwaukee. Float Therapy is a sensory deprivation experience in which you float in an Epsom salt bath in a blackened room, wearing silicone earplugs. In short, I loved it! The experience, however, deserves a bit more explanation…
I was in Connecticut to do a Spirit Gallery and Book discussion for the CT state Tax Collectors, something I had been having fun talking about for the last few months. After all, it was an unlikely thing that Tax Collectors would hire a Psychic Medium to be part of their annual conference, but such is my life…filled with the wyrd and unusual. The time I spent with the Tax Collectors was truly beautiful. They were an open-hearted group of people, eager to expand their understanding of the unseen world. This alone was worth the trip!
I had planned to stay in Connecticut for an additional day, before taking a plane to Florida as I wanted time to work on the land & water in Long Island Sound, as Earth Healing is a passion of mine. When I discovered that the resort (The Water’s Edge) was a beachfront property I knew I would need an extra day, so that I could spend time in the morning doing Geomancy (earth healing) & sacred singing to the Genius Locus/Spirit of Place that was Long Island Sound.
As I set up my crystal grid on the empty beach (the benefits of being there in March) I felt the land reaching out to me. I recognized the ancient rhythm of the land, something seldom heard by the busy throngs of people that populate the sound. I opened myself to spirit and sang from my soul. (You can find a Facebook live video of this on my personal page Sali Crow). I was moved by the energy there and could sense the energetic vibration of the Native Americans who had once called this land their home. I felt a deep sadness for the lack of awareness most people carry within them, which shifted as I remembered the room of Tax Collectors I had spoken to the night before. Times are changing I heard in my mind, people are waking up, we can make a difference.
This experience would have been grand enough on its own to fill my need for Sacred Adventure, but I knew more lay ahead for me. For I had booked appointments for myself and my husband for Float Therapy later in the day. After are time on the beach we hopped in the car and set up the GPS, only to find that the spa we were heading to was not in the same town as us, but 2 hours away in the wrong direction. I was totally bummed out. I had thought I was in Westport, CT when in reality we were in West Brook, CT. This geographical fuck-up, made my husband chuckle. He told me he was sorry we wouldn’t be able to make the appointments, but that my ability to lose track of regular things; like what town we were in, was one of the things he loved about me. He appreciated it as an interesting quirk that made all my Psychic abilities feel more balanced. That even though I had all these amazing gifts, I still needed help with some of the more practical things in life.
To say I was disappointed was an understatement. Instead of Float Therapy, I was heading to the pharmacy to pick up antihistamines for my Florida time (orange blossoms due me in). After leaving the pharmacy we decided to take the rural routes to Hartford and see what we found along the way. A few miles into the drive I just started googling Float Therapy in CT and found a place 20 minutes away on the road we were on. Better yet we could get 1.5 hours for the same price as an hour in the first location. When I called they had availability for the both of us as soon as we could get there. I felt a deep connection to the sea and the sound again, and couldn’t help but think that the strands of Wyrd (fate) that made up my life, had woven me a better pattern; after all, I really wanted to do 1.5 hours not 1.
When we arrived at the spa we left our shoes at the door and were shown into private rooms which held a shower and a deprivation chamber. The deprivation chamber was quite large. The ceiling of it was large enough to stand in, and it’s length and width were big enough that you could stretch out without touching the walls. The water itself was only about 10” deep and filled with Epsom salt & peroxide.
After showering you got into the chamber (naked), shut the door and settled yourself in the water. The Epsom salt & peroxide in the water making it almost impossible to stay sitting up, and easy for you to float. The water and air are body temperature, something that makes it easy to lose track of what part of your body is in water and what is not. There are lights that are easy to find in the darkness that illuminates the tub and the ceiling above in a pleasant blue, for those who do not feel comfortable with complete deprivation of the senses. I did turn them on at one point just to see what the experience was like with light. It was still good, but I wanted the darkness and complete deprivation.
Within a few moments, I was losing track of my body and found that I would drift off and come back in a rhythmic pattern. The longer I was in the water the further into my mind I would go, and the less connected to my body I felt. The first time my body drifted over to one of the sides and my finger touched the tub wall, I was slightly startled, to be quickly back in my body…but only momentarily. The word startled may be a bit much as it was more like stepping out of a dream for a few moments, before drifting off again.
The only sound I could hear was the sound of my breath, something I periodically engaged with. There were a few moments of discomfort for me, as I am someone who can go so far into trance that I develop a form of sleep apnea and stop breathing for a short second. I have done this periodically throughout my life, so I was not scared, I just returned to consciousness for a few moments and connected to my breath, until I drifted off again. This is not told to scare you, but to let you know how deeply relaxing the experience is. The trance apnea as I like to call it is not really that common, but something I have experienced my entire life. It does not scare me, it is more of a reminder…”Hey Sali, you are still in your body remember it needs to breath”.
The feeling of floating in complete darkness at body temperature, while the only sound you hear is your own breathing is reminiscent of the womb, and the feeling of spaciousness & timelessness is truly remarkable. I would highly recommend Float Therapy. That being said, if you are claustrophobic, or not comfortable with your own mind, you may want to hesitate. It is truly a sacred journey.
I had completely lost track of time, and new this was ok. Music would gently startup for the last 5 minutes of the session to let you know it was time to get out and come back to reality. Shortly before this time, I decided I wanted to play with the deprivation a bit, control what experience I had. So I started to tone (sacred singing) at such a low volume that it would most likely sound like a murmur above the water. But in the water and darkness with silicone earplugs in, the sound was experienced on a vibrational level throughout my whole body. It moved through me and filled me with energy (something I carried throughout the entire day, to the point that my husband compared it to sleeping next to an active battery). The other interesting thing about experiencing the sound of my toning in such a manner as I could see the vibrations in my mind’s eye as well as hear them and feel them. It was interesting to see how some sounds that appeared solid when I tone normally, were actually more of a quick rhythmic pattern…with short pauses throughout the elongated sound. This is something I want to explore more in depth and will be searching out Float Therapy closer to home.
After exiting the deprivation chamber, and showering off the Epsom salt mix, I felt deeply relaxed and energized at the same time. However, I was ready for some espresso, to ground me solidly into form.
I write this from Florida, sitting in the quiet morning sunlight of my in-law’s house. My time here I short, filled with Seances, Readings and Book signings, but I am thankful for the 70+ degree weather, and the green I see out the window. I will be searching out Float Therapy when I return back to Vermont. Thanks for reading folks.
Spreading love-salicrow