In Search of THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH - Midwest Float

By JAMIE SLACK

Photos by RACHEL LOCK

FLOAT AWAY STRESS Sensory deprivation treatment sounds like something straight out of a science fiction movie—actually, it maybe have been. In the wildly popular Netflix show Stranger Things, the main character transcends dimensions through an odd water treatment, eerily similar to the one offered by Midwest Float.

Midwest Float opened its doors earlier this year, allowing clients to float away their stress in sensory deprivation capsules.

Casey Campbell, owner of Midwest Float, said he found a need for area residents to decompress from the complexities of life.

“The purpose of floating is to have ‘me time’—just you and your thoughts,” Campbell said.

According to Campbell, floating can help with cortisone levels and alleviate symptoms of pain and even Fibromyalgia. A UV sanitation light and filtration system are used to keep the float pod clean and ready for the next guest.

“Floaters,” as patients are nicknamed, will find themselves immersed in 93.5 degree water, where they won’t be able to tell where their body ends and the water begins. This absence of senses allows clients to fully relax. Near the changing room, clients may write down the cause of their stress on a white wall—another way of letting that stress go.

Campbell, who also had difficulty sleeping, found that floating helped him with anxiety and depression.

“It was hard to turn off my mind,” Campbell said. “Everyone is different, but for me and the people that come here, we love it.”

The search for that elusive “Fountain of Youth” keeps us focused on the future and the desire to look and feel our best. Although the actual fountain has never been discovered, aging gracefully in Topeka is definitely a possibility now with many options available to those who seek it.