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Floating, time out, relaxation = amazing.
31 Mar 2020
by Kirsty Smallman

For those who know me will be shocked at this next sentence. I took 45 minutes out of my day to relax, stop still and switch my mind off!

(Little did I know we would all have plenty of opportunity to do this in lock-down in the weeks following my visit to Shropshire Floats!)

A 30 minute drive to Myddle (I’d never been to Myddle before) and Google Maps took me straight to the venue of Kevin and Suzie’s new venture.

I couldn’t help myself but walk through the door and shout “one burger and one paella please!” – I won’t repeat the reply I got off Kevin! Anyone who knows this successful business duo will be smiling now.

 

 

Had I floated before?

No! I do love a spa day but time is precious and it takes a full day off work and usually takes about 6 months to organise my friends or family to join me. I’ve never felt like I should go to a spa day alone but felt extremely comfortable going to float alone.

I’d read how people felt more relaxed after a 45-minute float then they did after a full spa day – I wasn’t convinced but I am now. And now thinking about it a spa day can actually be quite a “busy day” of clock watching to see when your next beauty treatment is, what time lunch is served and whether you can get in the sauna or jacuzzi when you want. We won’t discuss the desire to get a lounger and then fail as everyone has left their towels there for the full day whilst they have 8 hours of treatments!

So why float?

Well you can find all of the answers here but for me it was the chance to switch off, chill out and actually stretch! Yes I had done a gym work out before arriving and had been working out very hard in the weeks before my first float so my muscles felt tight.

Kevin and Suzie said floating was different for everyone – some switched off completely, some people went through their to-do lists, some organised their mind, some went into deep thought, some slept for the whole session – I actually did a bit of all of the above and stretched too. There is no doubt floating helps your physical, mental and general well-being – again the benefits of floating will be different for all.

The capsule may not look that big in the photos but I can assure you it is – you move around or the water moves you around and you have no choice but to relax.

My stretching was amazing and at the end of my session my muscle around my hip, which seems to be going into spasm, was free. I felt great.

 

What if I suffer from anxiety or am claustrophobic?

I had already read reviews from people who suffered with anxiety and many people who suffered with fibromyalgia – all of them benefitted from floating and felt better after.

A friend of mine has floated since my visit and suffers with anxiety and fibromyalgia and found herself a little claustrophobic to begin with but said she soon relaxed and loved it.

When I saw her the next day she said her joints would normally be hurting her and they weren’t that day and she felt calmer and happier.

 

So what difference did it make to me?

Floating made me stop. For a busy business owner and a mother of two boys with very hectic social lives this is a rarity. People say I go at 100mph and exhaust them!

I did not have my diary out, my laptop in front of me or my phone in my hand. I could not even read a book. I loved it!

I didn’t feel guilty that I was taking a whole day out of the business (because I wasn’t – it was just the equivalent of a lunch break!); I didn’t think about all of the jobs I wasn’t doing (because they had been done before my visit and could be finished off after my float) and I did not have to organise a spa day for my friends or family – it was just for me and that felt a little more special.

In fact my husband and I were due to go together for his birthday but the boy’s activities got in the way and then I couldn’t pin a free space down in his diary so I went alone.

Nobody else to think about and I didn’t have to wait for their availability – just me and my one hour experience.

 

I suffer from eczema/psoriasis – can I float?

Well if I’m honest I didn’t actually think about this prior to making my booking! But when Suzie was explaining the salts and said to use the vaseline on any open cuts – I started to wonder what my skin would do. The memories of me running into the sea as a child and coming out crying came flooding back.

But if I didn’t try it I wouldn’t know. I’m not going to lie – the salts did sting my skin a little bit when I first got in. However I also know having my hair dyed is also very painful but it helps my eczema on my scalp so a few swear words later in the hairdressers and it’s worth it so I knew this would be too.

The salt wasn’t anywhere near as bad as the hair dye! And my skin felt silky, soft and smooth afterwards.

 

Will I be returning?

Of course – sadly Shropshire Floats is yet another victim of Covid-19 as they have had to close due to Government guidelines. We all agree this is right – the sooner we kick this virus out of the world then the sooner we can get back to normal life – and floating!

This will be my new “go-to” for birthday presents as the gift vouchers are great. It will introduce my family and friends to the idea of floating so we can enjoy the experience together – not physically together! Two separate capsules in two different rooms – a refreshing glass of water and hot drink after – quick super blow dry of the hair with the fabulous Dyson hair dryers and then off to the nearby pub for a highly recommended pub lunch! Another factor I love about Shropshire Floats is that you can arrive literally as you are – I took a huge bag with my towel, swimming costume, toiletries but I didn’t need any.

This will be my routine whether I am with friends or without – I simply don’t care!

I can see it being hugely popular with busy workers who may spend all day every day on the road – they can just call in and float and de-stress as part of their lunch break or as part of their journey to the next meeting and it doesn’t matter if they haven’t got anything with them. Everything is provided – just your own hair brush is needed!

So let’s do what we have done with so many local, independently owned businesses which have been forced to temporarily close their doors – order those gift vouchers now so they have a little bit of income and light at the end of the tunnel when Coronavirus is a thing of the past. Roll on Shropshire Floats re-opening day and join the queue! We are good at queuing by now – two metres apart of course – but hopefully by then that will be a thing of the past and we will be high-fiving in celebration!