I'm all for anything that's said to benefit my well-being and that's why I knew I had to take a trip to Float Planet on Dale Street.
Mental Health is an extremely important factor in our lives, and making sure we look after ourselves is vital. Over the years I've tried many different ways of promoting well-being, including meditation, yoga and massages, but I've never tried float therapy.
Float therapy is a form of therapy 'loved by celebrities' that is said to increase our mental and physical health in as little as an hour. 'Float Planet' is tucked away on Dale Street, and offers customers a floating therapy experience starting from £44, or £35 for a 'float membership'.
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But what exactly does float therapy include? Well, there are two different types of floating available, one in the 'ocean room' or another in the 'I-SOPOD'.
Each tank has over 1,000lbs of Epsom salts dissolved into it which allows you to float effortlessly. Tanks also block out all external distractions including sight and sound.
Athletes such as Wayne Rooney, Stephen Curry and Novak Djokovic are all known to use flotation therapy as well as celebrities including Zac Efron. If I can get any kind of link to Zac Efron, I'm game, so I was very excited to step foot into the 'ocean room' upon my arrival.
The experience
As soon as I stepped foot into 'Float Planet' I felt a sense of calm. I was offered a nice cool cup of water and asked to take my shoes off and make my way downstairs to begin my floating experience.
I was really impressed with the facilities on offer, with a 'vanity room' equipped with a hairdryer, deodorant and cotton buds for a pamper after your float. There were a few different rooms with pods, but as a whole the setting was really quiet and intimate, which is exactly the sort of atmosphere you want for this kind of experience.
I was shown into my 'ocean room' which had a shower and a small bench area with hangers for my clothes and belongings. There was also earbuds and Vaseline available, I was advised to apply the earbuds before getting in the shower so they could expand into my ears easily before getting wet and the Vaseline was for any open cuts.
First up, it was shower time. As mentioned in the disclaimer form upon entry, it's advised that you have a cold shower before entering the water to regulate body temperature - so I did just that.
It's advised that you float naked for the full experience, but I opted for a bikini this time round. After my cool shower I was ready to go, and I was very excited.
I used the 'halo float' which is an optional float that you place on the back of your head, to give you a bit of extra support. As I got in the water I felt immediately calm, the water was still with an ever so slight tingle of salt and relaxing music was playing.
For the first 10 minutes of the experience the music was playing, and it really began to slow my heartrate right down. I was advised that having the lights off would be more effective, which I did try, but I preferred the gorgeous blue twinkling starlight effect above me that I found very relaxing.
The music stopped after 10 minutes and it was completely silent for the remainder of the hour in the water. I heard absolutely no sounds and really started to relax.
It was almost as if my brain just completely switched off, as if I was in a meditative state. Everything was quiet and I had no distractions, no pinging of phones and no niggling thoughts.
At one point, I actually almost fell asleep and woke myself up with a twitch, so I must have been very relaxed. The actual hour of floating felt like a really long time, but that was definitely not a bad thing, because it allowed me to switch off completely.
The last 10 minutes of my float was welcomed with music again, to let me know it was almost time to end my float. I honestly could've stayed in there for longer.
The verdict
I absolutely loved my first float experience, and if I had to describe it in one word I'd say 'magical'. Everything was still, calm and serene and I already want to book another one.
Granted, this experience doesn't come cheap at £44 for a single float, but I think it'd be really beneficial for a treat even if it's just once every few months. I can't wait to visit again and completely switch off.
Find out more about Float Planet, or book your first float here.
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