St. Pete Salt Works owner Mark Anderson took the elements that he liked from other float businesses to create his own. Brianna Rodriguez | The Crow’s Nest
By Brianna Rodriguez
Floating in a warm, calm ocean where your five senses disappear and your body is met with ease is what an experience in a float tank feels like.
St. Pete Salt Works, 17 Dr. M.L.K. Jr Street N, is the first salt tank in St. Petersburg where the experience of sensory deprivation becomes reality.
Sensory deprivation sounds like something out of a scene from “Stranger Things,” but the practice of depriving the body’s senses in tanks has been around since 1954. John C. Lilly, a medical practitioner and neuropsychiatrist, experimented with sensory deprivation and combined the experience with using LSD.
St. Pete Salt Works opened Aug. 1, but owner Mark Anderson’s idea to start a flotation business began nine years ago after he experienced sensory deprivation and noticed the cognitive effects.
“I floated at a lot of places and put it together and created one here,” said Anderson.
Felicia Miller, 48, has floated before, but Saturday was her first time at St. Pete Salt Works. She discovered the location the night before and decided to try it out.
“I turned out the lights and thought that this was awesome,” Miller said. “I love water and I like that I have it in the area. I can swim to workout and float to relax.”
Before you enter the tank, you are given earbuds and petroleum jelly as a liquid bandage to prevent cuts from getting irritated. You are also asked to shower outside of the tank first.
The water was warm, and a blue glow illuminated through the tank. I lied down and fiddled with the lights. Aside from a sliver of light from under the door, the room was pitch black.Ale
My eyes closed and I struggled to quiet my thoughts. I ended up gliding my arms and legs back and forth in the water. The feeling of weightlessness was relaxing. I felt like a jellyfish gracefully wandering about in the water.
There were a few times in the beginning where my eyes burned from the salt water. Thankfully, I brought my towel close to the tank and I was given a spray bottle of fresh water before entering.
I inhaled and exhaled until I was no longer aware of my breath.
That was when a feeling of calm washed over me.
My thoughts began to expand. Creative ideas flowed through my mind and I felt as though nothing could hold me back.
With midterms this week, I found myself strategizing my final study days and creating framework of how I was going to prepare for the tests.
I developed a lot of thoughts of the future and the person that I am becoming.
As my time in the tank ended, the lights came on and music began to play.
Afterward I exited the tank and showered. I recommend bringing conditioner and lotion for the experience. My skin felt soft and my body felt relaxed.
This was unlike anything that I have experienced. My usual pain in my neck and back disappeared. My skin felt soft and my hair felt clean.
If extra self-care is in your budget, this experience is worth the money. Your mind and body will be completely relaxed, and you’ll feel a sense of total stillness.
St. Pete Salt Works also offers a 10 percent discount to USF students.
“If you need a place to be where you experience nothing, this is the place to be,” Anderson said.
