Sensory Deprivation Flotation Therapy

I’m a 27 year old self-supported-ultra-marathon-endurance-athlete attempting to document my experience seeing the world and meeting new people from all walks of life along the way, by the freedom of two wheels.  

I am a Writer, traveler, adventurer, & storyteller.  

One man, one bike, one life.  

One year, 13,000 miles solo, telling the story of America on the Adventure of a lifetime.  

Putting all my eggs in one basket and taking that leap.  Relying on faith in humanity, and people helping people, with a “pay it forward” mindset in order to see the world and live without regret.  

Why?  

Because everybody dies, but not everybody lives.  

Tomorrow ain’t promised, so we might as well cram it in today while we got it.  

And this is what Floating means to me.

We all have hopes & dreams that we’re chasing and problems & fears that we’re running away from.  Sometimes it’s all about the destination other times it’s all about the journey itself.  For me, packing my life on bicycle and setting out to explore the great unknown fills the void for all of those things.  However, life on the road can be exhausting; going from couch to couch to bed to floor space to campsite to couch to...  you get it.  

The travel alone is a task in itself; packing, unpacking, repacking, reorganizing.  Trying to make sure all of your things are in order, keeping your bike working properly, keeping food in your body & a surplus in stow, staying hydrated & stocked with water, keeping your clothes dry & clean, and your batteries charged.  It seems arbitrary but it becomes a tedious and never ending task to stay on top of all of it.  

Researching your route, utilizing your access to resources effectively.  Timing your plan according to the weather and other factors outside of your control.  Settling into a new place everyday and by the time you get comfortable it’s time to leave.  All the while conquering steep climbs, mountain passes, gale force winds, pouring rain, cold temperatures, poor roads, & stressful traffic.  

It’s draining.  

Physically, mentally, emotionally. 

Draining.  

There are days I just want to sleep for weeks.  

Hauling the sheer weight of all your gear alone makes every day feel like your own “worlds strongest man competition” against yourself.  

You can never undervalue the importance of rest and recovery.  When you push yourself to the limits day after day, you need time to let your body and mind relax and repair itself from the fatigue and damage sustained on the road.  For me the best place to do this is in a sensory deprivation tank; floating weightless, in the vast, dark, empty, nothingness... Isolated from reality and deprived of all incoming sensory information.  An utter lack of outside stimulation, where the only place to look is within.  

There’s just something about soaking immersed in a warm salt bath at zero gravity that allows your body to fully relax and decompress from the stress and the strain of excreting yourself to your maximum output.  The perfect platform to clear your head of all distracting thoughts and focus introspectively on what you need to be concentrating on.  A chamber to reflect upon the past and consolidate the memories from recent to distant events.  A sanctuary to contemplate the future and plan accordingly.  A temple for setting short and long term goals.  The perfect place to make a list.  A relaxing pressure free zone to address your issues head on and use your problem solving abilities to find solutions to these obstacles you face in your daily life.  A peaceful place where you can learn to accept the aspects of your life that you can’t change for what they are, and figure out how to approach those issues you do have the ability to control.  

That’s what floatation therapy does for me.  

As an athlete it helps me with my recovery process and my strength building, it loosens tightness, reduces cramping, and minimizes joint, tendon, and muscle pain.

As a writer, an artist, & a storyteller it helps me to have those “ah ha” lightbulb moments; where I figure out just exactly how to word something I’ve been struggling to articulate; & discover how to capture the true essence of a feeling or a moment.  

And Finally.

As a human who struggles with depression & lack of motivation; as an individual who has always had issues with change & loss, and as someone who has struggled with accepting a reality that is less than ideal...  the tank it is a sacred and therapeutic place in which I can look deep within myself to find the answers to the questions I have failed to solve in the outside world. A place where I can see the problems I face from a different perspective; in a light that allows me to find that missing piece to the puzzle I’ve been looking for all along.  

It’s amazing how a small tank offering “nothing” can provide so much.  It’s incredible how 90 minutes of “nothing” can cure hundreds of miles of physical pain and solve decades of self doubt.

Mind, body, spirit, health, & wellness.  

All in one.  

That’s what floatation therapy means to me and why I value the small amount of time I get to spend in a tank so much.

It’s worth it’s weight in gold.