According to a recently published study, Scientific Reports Floatation therapy has been found to produce significantly greater relaxation, reduced anxiety and less fatigue than resting on a warm waterbed, and it also induces more pronounced altered states of consciousness characterised by the disappearance of bodily boundaries and a distortion of subjective time, providing insight into how floatation therapy exerts its calming effects.
In Floatation-Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy (Floatation-REST), you float in a tank filled with Epsom salt-saturated water, warmed to skin temperature and isolated from external stimuli such as light and sound. This environment creates a feeling of weightlessness. The unique conditions of the tank greatly reduce external sensory input, known as sensory deprivation.
Previous studies have highlighted that floating rest may improve mental and physical health, but the mechanisms behind these benefits are not well understood. By comparing floating rest with bed rest (lying on a warm waterbed in a dark, soundproof room), the researchers aimed to isolate the specific effects of the floating environment and understand how it induces changes in consciousness.
“I’m interested in altered states of consciousness, and flotation rest is a safe and easy-to-perform induction technique,” said study author Mark Wittman, a researcher at the Institute for Advanced Research in Psychology and Mental Health and author of “Altered States of Consciousness: Experiences Beyond Time and Self.”
“Through extreme alterations in states of consciousness, we learn about consciousness, a subject of central importance to psychology and brain science. We know that in altered states of consciousness such as meditation, taking psychedelics, and flotation rest, our sense of self and time, our sense of self and time, can be adjusted up or down.”
The study employed a within-subject crossover design with 50 healthy participants. Each participant underwent two conditions: 60 minutes of floating rest and 60 minutes of bed rest (lying on a warm waterbed in a dark, soundproof room). The study was conducted in three sessions: an initial familiarization session followed by two experimental sessions.
After the floating rest session, participants reported significantly lower levels of anxiety, stress, and tension compared to the bed rest session. They also felt more relaxed and less fatigued. This suggests that floating rest provides a deeper relaxation effect than bed rest, which involves similar sensory decrements but without immersion in water.
Flotation rest induced more pronounced changes in consciousness, including a stronger disappearance of bodily boundaries and a greater subjective distortion of time. Participants experienced a significant blurring of the boundary between their body and the water around them, and many reported losing track of time or feeling that time was passing in a different way than usual.
“We now have a tool that can safely induce deep states of relaxation and reduce anxiety levels,” Whitman told PsyPost. “I call Floatation-REST an ‘instant meditation,’ because it puts you in a deep, meditative state without requiring much practice.”
Mediation analyses revealed that the resolution of body boundaries during Floatation-REST mediated the reduction in state anxiety. This finding suggests that the blurring of body boundaries and the resulting ASC are important factors in the therapeutic effect of Floatation-REST.
“A big question in the field of psychedelic therapeutic research is whether an altered state trip is necessary for the healing process, or whether pharmacological substances without the ‘side effects’ of a trip would be sufficient,” Wittman explains. “At least with flotation rest, we can show that anxiety reduction depends on a reduction in bodily boundaries, which can be interpreted as becoming one with the world.”
“In other words, an altered state is necessary to reduce anxiety. The loss of bodily boundaries mediates the loss of anxiety, revealing a new mechanism by which Floatation-REST exerts its anxiolytic effects.”
The researchers also found that participants with higher absorption (the ability to become fully immersed in an activity) experienced a stronger disappearance of bodily boundaries during floating rest, indicating that individual characteristics may influence the depth of ASC.
“Our study shows that flotation rest is a safe and effective means of inducing certain aspects of the ASC among healthy individuals,” Wittman said. “People typically pay up to 100 euros/dollars per hour to have this experience.”
Future studies could explore the effects of multiple or longer floating sessions to see if more pronounced and sustained ASC can be achieved. Additionally, investigating the therapeutic potential of Floatation-REST in clinical populations, such as individuals with anxiety disorders or body image issues, could provide further evidence of its benefits.
“We continue to map the float-REST effects, such as the subacute ‘afterglow’ effect felt after floating, which can last from minutes to hours,” Wittman said. “In addition, we are trying to record brain activity during suspension, which is not an easy task because the saltwater is supersaturated.”
The study, “Induction of altered states of consciousness during flotation rest is associated with disappearance of body boundaries and subjective time distortion,” was written by Helena Ruby, Stephen Schmidt, Justin S. Feinstein, and Mark Wittman.
