Floatation

Floatation on Guildhall Street, Bury St Edmunds

I'd been looking forward to my visit to Floatation.

But as it turned out, on the day of my appointment I was very busy, slightly stressed, and I ended up arriving in a flustered rush at the therapy centre on Guildhall Street.

A few minutes later though, and I was already relaxing in the peaceful and calm surroundings of their reception area. Kevan the manager brought me a very welcome glass of chilled water, and chatted to me unhurriedly about the treatments I was going to receive: a float in one of the tanks and a no hands massage with therapist Sharon Dempsey.

Reception area where clients are welcomed; a glimpse into a floatation room

The idea of the float, Kevan explained, is to restrict stimulation to the brain so that it can relax. As your brain relaxes, so do all of the muscles in your body. A float in the tank can help you achieve a deep state of relaxation, relieves pain, and allows you to recover from stress. As it stimulates blood flow throughout your body, natural endorphins are released and your brain produces alpha waves.

There's just ten inches of water in each tank, and a third of a ton of Epsom salts is dissolved in the water, which gives it its buoyancy - and yes, you really do float. The beneficial effects of floating, as well as those of the Epsom salts used in the water are well documented. Although floatation therapy has been around since the fifties, the tanks at Floatation in Bury are state of the art, and each tank is in its own private room with a shower. The client has total control over the environment.

Private room with changing area; my tank just before I stepped in

Stepping into one of the floatation tanks is a bit like climbing into a giant space pod, and feels like it even more when you press the button for the lid to go down (you can also choose to float with the lid up if you wish, the choice is yours). Once lying in the tank, I could only just see my feet in the very dim red light. The water was like liquid silk and my body felt like it was dressed in it. And I was floating. Really floating.

When the music - which I had chosen to have for the first and last ten minutes - came to a stop, there was a real feeling of calm in the silence. I turned off the light so there was complete darkness. After some time, I'm not sure how long, I was no longer conscious of the water, and felt like I was suspended in the air. This happens, apparently, because the water is at the same temperature as the room.

The urge to move around left me, and I lay in stillness. My arms, I realised, were up by my head, my hands gently curled into fist shapes. Very unusually for me, I had no inclination to think about anything. Everything, seemed to have slowed down and the outside world was shut out. Towards the end of my float, the water began to feel very warm on my skin although it is only at body temperature. Sharon, who was waiting to take me for my massage, said I looked like I was glowing when I emerged from the room.

Therapy room where Sharon gave me my massage

Sharon's no hands massage was fantastic, probably the best massage I've had. In this form of massage, the therapist uses their forearms, and the transference of bodyweight to give a really deep and effective massage. Although I had slight lower back pains (which I sometimes suffer from) when I lay down, these were gone within a couple of minutes. At the end I was able to lay there for a while, until I felt like getting up and moving on to the chill out room.

It's hard to understand exactly why the chill out room is necessary until you have experienced the treatments at Floatation. I certainly needed time to "come down" before getting back on with my day. The room is lovely, and I appreciated the drink making facilities, with a choice of all sorts of teas, coffee, and chilled fruit juices.

A corner of the lovely chill out room

The effects of my treatments - which were very calming - lasted a few days and I found my ability to focus and concentrate much improved the day after. Effects of floating are cumulative, so I do plan to go back for more - highly recommended.

Floatation, in Guildhall Street, is the only floatation therapy centre in Suffolk and there are only seventeen in the whole of the UK. The one in Bury St Edmunds is the only one, anywhere, with a float room and tank made accessible for people with disabilities. As well as the no hands massage, a range of other therapies is available at the centre, any of which can be combined with a float. Gift vouchers are available for all treatments. A standard float costs £25 - all other prices and details of all the therapies are available on the Floatation website.

Contact Floatation; a glimpse of the chill out room

Floatation is at 31-33 Guildhall Street, Bury St Edmunds. Tel: 01284 724 800. Email: info@floatation.biz. Website www.floatation.biz. Open 7 days a week. Last session at 8.30pm, centre closing at 10pm.