Feel your worries float away!

Their brochure says “Floating is about everything that you won’t be doing.” Many friends claim I’m always doing too many things, so I decided I should experience a session at Urban Float, which opened its doors in Rehoboth about two years ago.

The experience is described as weightless meditation, where guests are invited to float in a private sensory-managed pod in purified water including 1,200 pounds of Epsom salt. 

Assistant Devin greeted me at the door and asked how I was feeling. Anxious, I said. It’s been going on for about a year. (No. Actually, it began in kindergarten, I refrained from saying.) He allayed some of my fears at the onset. A bathroom stop was imperative. Drinking less caffeine beforehand was duly noted when I made the appointment.

The pod reminded me of an enormous Easter egg. As he lifted the lid to reveal the inside lights, glowing red first, then pink, and purple and green, I was reminded of dyeing eggs at the kitchen counter with my children.

“You can turn the lights off if you want,” Devin explained.

“Do you have to close the pod all the way?” I asked.

“Some people choose to leave it open,” he reassured me.

“What if I need to get out?”  

Devin showed me how easy it was to lift the lid and pointed to the call button. Then he asked what music I liked.

My friend Jen floats five to 10 times a month. “At first I was worried about claustrophobia, and now I love the silence,” she said. “I float in the dark with chosen music on swimmer headsets and disconnect from the physical world. If I'm really trying to figure something out, floating clears my head and the answer often appears.”

Another friend has recommended Urban Float numerous times: “I call it the ‘Ginny hour’ and imagine I'm in the Caribbean. My friends elsewhere are envious that we have such a great facility right here. I try not to gloat about my float.”

I climbed into the pod, closed the lid and became a floating device. The spa music was at the perfect volume. At first I felt strange and wondered if I would last 50 minutes. Soon I concentrated on my breathing and watched the lights fade and change color. By the time a little voice announced, “Your session has ended,” I thought, where did the time go?

After I showered and washed the salt off my body, I retreated to the post-float lounge to relax in front of a gas fireplace.

The Urban Float company says, “Published and peer-review studies have shown floating can have lasting mental, emotional and physical benefits. It can relieve everyday aches and pains, and improve sleep quality.”

Jen believes this. “The infusion of magnesium from 1200 lbs. of Epsom salts has helped add range of motion to my new replacement shoulder. Beyond that is the relaxation and stress reduction that comes from deep meditation. A winning package.”

A few words of caution might help improve your first experience. Say yes to the ear pods and take the flotation device offered for under your head to the pod before you close the lid. I got back out to retrieve it, as I wanted neck support.

That afternoon, my ears were filled with salt crystals. Now I realize why Devin said there was a small bottle of vinegar in the shower. So later in the evening, I mixed a solution of one part vinegar to one part alcohol and my husband poured the suggested tablespoon into each ear – and down my face and neck onto the kitchen floor.

One last caution: Try not to get the water in your eyes.

If you want to schedule your own experience or to learn more, call Urban Float at 302-232-3141, email rehoboth@urbanfloat.com or visit urbanfloat.com/rehoboth. It is located on Route 1 at 18979 Coastal Highway, across the highway from Michaels and Rite Aid.