What is float therapy?

Your phone has a setting for everything except “leave me alone.”

The float tank does.

No emails. No conversation to keep up with. No small person asking where their shoes are. Just warm water holding you up while the world carries on without needing your help.

That sounds like a luxury. For many people, it feels more like remembering something they forgot they were allowed to do: rest.

What is float therapy?

You lie back in about 12 inches of skin-temperature water saturated with Epsom salt. The buoyancy holds you on the surface without swimming, balancing or bracing.

Most of the usual input falls away. Your phone stays outside. Lights and audio are your choice. You can ease in with a soft glow and a guided track, or choose silent darkness.

Researchers call it Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy, or REST. “Restricted” matters: the idea is less stimulation, not a test of how much isolation you can endure.

At True North, floats last 60, 75 or 90 minutes in a private suite. You control the environment and can step out at any point.

From a laboratory to a little inner space

The tank began in the 1950s with neuroscientist John C. Lilly, who wanted to explore consciousness with much of the outside input turned down. Commercial float centers followed decades later.

The setup has changed. The question still works: what does your mind do when it can’t keep reaching for another distraction?

First it may throw a meeting. Grocery list. Old argument. Brilliant idea you’ll forget before you find a pen. Eventually, many floaters find the noise begins to settle.

That is part of the practice, not a sign you’re doing it wrong.

One tank. Three ways in.

Heal — The Sanctuary

Put the world on pause. Let the water support your body and give yourself a window without demands. Many guests describe less tension and a deeper sense of rest afterward. Heal is our name for this intention—not a promise of medical treatment.

Discover — The Spaceship

With the outer world turned down, your inner world becomes harder to ignore. Memories, ideas, emotions, boredom. Bring curiosity rather than a checklist. On the other side of “nothing is happening,” you may notice quite a lot.

Transform — The Cocoon

One float is an experience. A rhythm of floats can become a practice: time to listen, reflect and return to the life you want to live. The insight is only the beginning; what you do with it outside the tank matters too.

“The sensory deprivation chamber has been the most important tool that I've ever used for developing my mind, for thinking, for evolving.”Joe Rogan · The Joe Rogan Experience

“Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding.”Khalil Gibran · The Prophet

“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure that you seek.”Joseph Campbell

These are perspectives on the experience, not research findings or promises about what your float will do.

What your first float is actually like

1. Arrival. Arrive 15 minutes early. We show you the suite, explain the controls and answer your questions. Nobody expects you to already know how to float.
2. Launch. Shower, then settle into the tank. You don’t need to hold yourself up. Let the salt do its one job exceptionally well.
3. Journey. Thoughts may wander. Time may get weird. You may feel deeply relaxed, a little restless, or both. Choose a guided track if it helps. There is no prize for forcing your mind to go blank.
4. Return. The end-of-float cue brings you back. Shower, get dressed, and give yourself a little time in the lounge before reaching for your phone.

A few useful first-float tips

• Most guests float without a swimsuit, but the choice is yours.
• Avoid shaving that day. Salt is a very thorough detective.
• Keep your hands away from your eyes; fresh water is available if salt gets in them.
• If the dark feels like too much, leave the light on. You are in control.
• Don’t grade the float while you’re having it. Notice what’s there.

Is it right for everyone?

Skip floating with open wounds, fresh tattoos or piercings, unstable hair dye, contagious illness, serious incontinence, uncontrolled epilepsy, ear tubes, or intoxication. Check with your healthcare provider if you are pregnant or have a medical concern, and ask the team if you’re unsure.

Floating is wellness, not medical treatment. Published studies help us understand possibilities; they do not replace individual guidance.

What the research reports

Floatation-REST has been studied for stress, anxiety, sleep, and recovery. This is wellness, not medical advice, but here is what published studies report:

• A single 60-minute float significantly reduced anxiety in people with anxiety-related conditions, with the biggest gains in those who started most anxious. (Feinstein et al., PLOS ONE, 2018)
• A randomized safety trial found floatation-REST was well tolerated in people with anxiety and depression, with no serious adverse events. (PLOS ONE, 2023)
• A meta-analysis found a large overall effect on stress reduction. (van Dierendonck & Nijenhuis, 2005)
• Floatation-REST improved perceived recovery after hard resistance training. (Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2022)

Individual experiences vary. If you have a medical condition, check with your healthcare provider first.

Further reading

Lilly JC. The Deep Self. 1977.

Feinstein JS et al. Examining the short-term anxiolytic and antidepressant effect of floatation-REST. PLOS ONE, 2018 (linked in the research summary above).

New to floating? Our First-Time Floater pack gives you three floats in 30 days for $111.