For Christmas Mike got me a gift card for a “float” at Float Station. Have you heard of this before? Floating is basically immersing yourself in a sensory deprivation tank for one hour. You can’t see or hear; taste, smell, or feel. You “don’t feel” because you’re floating in the water with a ton of episome salt in it. It’s like going to the Dead Sea without the flight.

I first heard of sensory depravation tanks my senior year in high school and was like, lol no. Our teacher told us we would get extra credit if we went in one and wrote a paper after. At the time, even if the idea of being alone with my thoughts in a dark tomb (how I pictured it) wasn’t off-putting enough, the price tag was.

Flash forward ~10 years and I have the chance to have my senses deprived; for free. (Well, kind of.. Christmas presents when you’re engaged are sort of like buying yourself a gift. What’s his is mine and vice versa.) Anyway, I finally got around to doing my float this week.

Apparently one float is equal to 4 hours of sleep or a vacation. Say what!? That alone is reason to do it. Although… I didn’t find that to be true 😉 but I was told you have to float more than once to reap the benefits. (Fact or scam? Who knows)

The Float Station in Campbell is really nice; with clean white walls, relaxing music, low lighting, and modern, minimal furniture. It felt more trendy than spa, which made me feel like I was in The Fifth Element. As expected, the ladies who checked us in were bubbly and all-knowing (that might sound snide but it’s not; they put me at ease because, truth be told, I was a little nervous before).

We were taken to our respective rooms and given a brief tutorial on floating. Basically, shower before you get in (but don’t use the conditioner because of the oils – conditioning is for after your float); put earplugs in before you get in the pod; the music will turn off after 10 minutes and back on again when you have 10 minutes left (this point ended up making me anxious while floating, but more on that later); move around and stretch when you first get in and then try to stay still for the rest of your float (already knew that wasn’t going to happen); and, most importantly, relax; let your mind be still (idk how that feels, btw).

Ok, so let’s cut to the chase. My float lasted about 40 minutes. I was moving around like a mermaid in there, and my mind was not still for a single moment. I’ll admit it was cool to be weightless and floating. The pod isn’t claustrophobic, which I was nervous about. It’s actually pretty nice in there… But, in my opinion, an hour is a long time to stay in. Plus, with my earplugs in, I couldn’t tell if the music was back on again or not. I was getting all anxious that my cue to wrap up my float was on and I’d miss it. I ended up getting out early mostly because I didn’t know if the music was on or not; that and I scratched my nose which got salt water on my lips. Game over.

It’s all toasty and body-temperature warm in the pod, so getting out was a little chilly. I immediately tiptoed to my phone and discovered I still had another 20 minutes left. Oh, well… time for a long shower, I thought, with conditioner.

Overall, floating was an experience but I’m not sure I’d pay to do it again. Unless, the float was shorter (and 1/2 the price)… then? Holler.