In Your Mind: Sensory Deprivation - Floating On Salt

by Todd Paul

"I see the tank as sort of a gateway into possibilities."

Oh, Buoy……

Does an article about floatation tanks belong in a magazine section ostensibly devoted to the arts?

That's the question that entered my mind when Jason Stern, Chronogram's erstwhile editor, called me up to ask me to write an article about a floatation workshop being offered at Esoterica in New Paltz. The workshop is being facilitated by Lee Perry, "a pioneer in the field" according to area tank maven Maureen Nelly. Perry worked closely with Dr. John Lilly, who invented the tanks in the 1950s and dubbed them "Samadhi tanks" for their mind-expanding, potentially enlightening effects. Jason was sure this would fit right in with Chronogram's arts section because, as he put it, "floating is an art."

Well, I'm not so sure that floating is any more an art than sinking, and any schlemiel with a rock tied around his ankle can do that. But after talking with Nelly, I am convinced that doing time in a floatation tank could be a boon to artists baked or blocked by the frenetic pace and stresses of modern life. I guess that's worth an article.

Nelly, who runs the only area tank accessible to the public, says she spends an hour or so every day lying on 10 to 12 inches of warm, super-saturated saline water. Lying "on" the water is the correct term, because there's so much salt in this water you really can't sink (at least not without the rock). The idea is that without external stimulation, your mind creates its own pictures and patterns. Some people report a state of deep relaxation; others take trips to spirit dimensions, heal themselves of physical or emotional wounds, or use the tanks to help conquer drug addiction. "I see the tank as sort of a gateway into possibilities for the individual," says Nelly.

Theoretically, the sensory isolation one experiences in the tank stimulates endorphin production in the brain. Endorphins are the "feelgood" chemicals produced when you play a hot and heavy game of racquetball, eat a pint of New York Super Fudge Chunk, have an orgasm, or indulge in any euphoric activity. Some floatation fanatics claim their tank experiences are even better than these. Nelly says for her the tank is a rejuvenator; she goes in tired and comes out refreshed and alive, ready to tackle the world. In this sense, she says, time devoted to floating is time invested. "For me, to go into that environment is like going home."

The workshop, which will be held at Esoterica Thursday, May 8, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., will not involve an actual tank. Instead, Perry will answer questions about floating and "recreate tank space without the use of the tank." (If only Perry could show us how to recreate orgasmic space without... well, never mind.) There will also be a second workshop offered Friday, May 9, in New York City. For more information, or to arrange for a float, call Nelly at 687-2056. ++

Todd Paul