Rise Above Floatation, located in Mount Kisco, NY is set to open its doors this June to be the first and only sensory deprivation float center in Westchester County.
Part of an industry that is exploding across the country, Rise Above Floatation will be opening three unique float experiences to Westchester’s meditators, athletes, artists, and those just looking for some way to relax.
The float tanks are designed to remove any stimulus from the outside world, relieving the floater of stress on a conscious and subconscious level.
This is done during a float session by allowing the floater to rest on top of 10 inches of a supersaturated Epsom salt solution to reduce the effects of the forces of gravity on joints and muscles while the air and water are set to the body’s skin temperature to minimize the body’s homeostatic response. The tanks are insulated from both sound and light.
Floaters have compared the effect to being back in the womb or floating through space.
“We are steeped in a digital culture that is becoming more and more invasive to personal lives and it’s not going anywhere,” says Micah Saccomanno, owner of Rise Above Floatation. “Floating is a way to unplug from that and listen to what you are actually trying to say to yourself. In the float experience, you find yourself able to think one thought at a time instead of navigating through a million thoughts at once. “
By getting rid of all stimulation to the brain, floating allows your body to stop creating all the chemicals and hormones, such as cortisol, that put you in a state of alert, and a true Relaxation Response kicks in. The brain decelerates from a state of alertness to a relaxed state and then after about 30 minutes it switches over to what is called a Theta state, the place between awake and asleep, where your mind is the most open and creative. In the tank, however, instead of falling asleep, you are completely aware of being in that state.
Being awake while being in the Theta state is what advanced meditators spend a lifetime seeking to achieve as it allows one to see one’s life objectively and with heightened awareness. Float tanks can accomplish the same thing with minimal effort.
“Float tanks are like meditation amplifiers.” says Saccomanno. “ But they are different in the sense that floating is a passive act and for exploring one’s self while meditation takes effort and is for training the mind, regardless of where you are. Floating is great for understanding the goals of where you want to be when you meditate.”
As floating has grown in popularity, the scientific community has found that the effects of sensory deprivation can produce a wide range of benefits.
In Tulsa, Oklahoma, the LIBR Float Clinic and Research Center is researching the medical effects of patients who experience a greater connection to their internal world by removing the distractions of the external world, hoping to more effectively treat mental issues like eating disorders, addiction, and PTSD.
Physically, floating has been shown to enhance and accelerate recovery from training and injury while improving performance when combined with visualization techniques.
The Theta state also enhances creativity through the Relaxation Response leading many artists and entrepreneurs to float for inspiration and problem solving.
With so many residents of Westchester seeking relief from their stressful jobs and their commute to New York City, Rise Above Floatation seeks to provide easy access to the benefits of floating. A convenient 2 minute walk from the Mt. Kisco Train station, floaters can travel from anywhere from Grand Central to White Plains to Brewster. Private parking is also available.
Memberships will be available as well as internships to make floating open to even more of Westchester’s community.
Rise Above Floatation is located at 111 East Main Street, Mount Kisco, New York on the first floor of the Elephant’s Trunk Building.
For booking and more information about floating, visit www.riseabovefloatation.com.
