CARROLL GARDENS — A new way to rest and relax in Carroll Gardens could leave you feeling lighter than a feather.
Lift/Next Level Floats, which opened at 320 Court St. two weeks ago, lets participants float in a solution with 1,000 pounds of Epsom salt “that is more buoyant than the Dead Sea,” according to its website.
Floating is a form of relaxation service that puts the spine in a neutral position and helps relieve the body of stress and tension, said Gina Antioco, who owns "Lift" along with David Leventhal.
Antioco and Leventhal met in 2013 during the Float Conference in Portland and decided to partner up for the business.
The center, which is located above beer tavern Buschenschank, has three Evolution Float Pods — clam-like vessels with lids that close — and two Ocean Float Rooms with seven-foot ceilings that can be accessed by side doors.
Each tank contains about 250 gallons of water and 1,000 pounds of Epsom salt, creating a state of complete buoyancy for anyone who enters, the owners said. Water and air temperature are maintained at skin temperature to alleviate physical distraction.
“You stop even feeling where your body ends and the water begins,” Antioco, 33, said. “You’re just a brain.”
People turn to floatation therapy for a number of reasons, Antioco and Leventhal said, including stress reduction, pain management, meditation and even regulating sleep habits.
One session in the pod or floatation room lasts for about an hour. Floaters are kept in darkness during the time with no outside disruptions, including cell phones.
And because those distractions are removed, floating can typically leave the mind in a hyper-focused state, one that often stimulates creativity, Leventhal said.
This form of therapy is often used by artists, athletes, dancers and actors who use the heightened state to visualize performances, plays and routines or rehearse lines. Some people also use it for “super learning,” such as speed learning a new language, he added.
Sessions are typically priced at $99 for a single float or $199 for a first-time three-float package. Lift/Next Level Floats is currently offering a special $99 "bring a friend" deal and $65 for an introductory session.
Floating requires no skill but Antioco and Leventhal recommend signing up for at least three sessions to fully appreciate the experience.
“We view it as a practice. Just like meditation,” said Leventhal. “In a way, it’s a form of escape.”
