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floatation tank memoirs
by Alex Burns (alex@disinfo.com) - October 07, 2001

You can create a sense of well-being, or you can create a sense of fear out of the operation of your own bio-computer. That's the most important message we have in regard to self-metaprogramming. I saw that in the tank.
~~ Dr. John Cunningham Lilly
What had to be done, it seemed to Jessup, was to work out some kind of methodology for studying our other consciousnesses under controlled conditions. To that end, the isolation tank seemed the most effective device. Unlike the psychedelic drugs, volition is retained. The tank experience can be controlled, even programmed, by either the subject himself or the observer-experimenter. You can actually determine what inner space you want to get into. And unlike hypnosis, the subject is constantly aware. [1]

The floatation (also known as the sensory deprivation or isolation) tank was devised in 1953-54 by Dr. John Cunningham Lilly, at the National Institute of Mental Health (Bethesda, Maryland). Floating in a 10-inch deep box of water (93.5 degrees Fahrenheit), enriched by 800 pounds of dissolved magnesium sulphate (Epsom salts), Lilly's original goal was to explore how solitude affected the mind, and the neurophysiology of consciousness. The unintended result was a powerful tool for transcending self-limiting beliefs, helping usher in humanistic and transpersonal psychology.

Initially linked to 'brainwashing' research (NIMH's bid for increased funding after the Korean War), Lilly's floatation tank became notorious after Altered States (1980), a film loosely based upon his private floats using LSD and Ketamine. Glenn and Lee Perry's Samadhi Tank prospered (Lilly-authorized manufacturers), privately-run floatation centers followed, and academic interest grew in Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy (REST) treatment of anxiety and stress-related disorders. Michael Hutchison's The Book of Floating: Exploring the Private Sea (New York: William Morrow & Co, 1984) suggested its peaking popularity rivalled the personal computer. However, the floatation tank meme ebbed and flowed by the mid-1980s. What happened?

Out of time in the "Greed is God" 1980s, Lilly understood that the receptive individual can 'evolve' through an unfolding continuum of morals and values development, analogous to his hardware/software model of the human brain/mind.

The floatation tank is a Human Potential tool to explore the Quantum Self's boundaries: how the subjective mind filters and models the objective universe. An artificial environment where you could establish a temporary belief state, letting it run without prediction or repression. A sacred place to experience the shift of Self-as-constant from G. Spencer Brown's Laws of Form (self-referential logic) to Francisco Varela (self-referential operators), to Heinz von Forrester (eigenfunctions). By reducing the sensory effects of gravity, sound, light, and temperature, we can modify our Earthside trip.

Anticipating the current search for a cellular source of memory (RNA and neuropeptides), Lilly's experiences suggest that a physically transcendent (holonomic, non-local) form of consciousness exists (evident in Near-Death Experiences and prenatal psychology). The International REST Investigators Society (IRIS), formed in 1983, spearheaded by Medical College of Ohio faculty members Thomas H. Fine and John. W. Turner, Jr., continues floatation tank research as a therapeutic treatment modality. Other practitioners have explored the 'future of the body', devising Western forms of yoga. Aleister Crowley would be pleased.

Lilly's manual The Deep Self: Profound Relaxation and the Tank Isolation Technique (New York: Warner Books, 1977), and his collaboration with E.J. Gold, Tanks for the Memories (Nevada City, CA: Gateways Books, 1995) explained how to restructure the subjective experience of time, space, subject, and object. The Gilding the Lilly symposium (April 26 - 30, 2000), streamed worldwide by the Association for Cultural Evolution signals the infection of new minds with Lilly's ideas.

Transpersonal scholars estimate only 0.1 percent of Earth's population have permanently stepped through the gateway into a new universe of creativity, cooperation, and non-fear of death (transcendent consciousness). Until the Space Migration movement blasts-off, the floatation tank is one of your best options for a shortcut through the power games that many sociopolitical protests become.

Make the revolution an extension of your personal evolution.

Endnotes:

[1] Paddy Chayefsky. Altered States. London: Corgi Books, 1980 [Hutchinson & Co Publishers Ltd., 1978]. p. 18

The Floatarium Flotation Tank: Exploring Inner Spaces
A brochure on floatation tanks explores the history of Dr. John Cunningham Lilly's research, outlines therapy applications, and features several testimonials.

Wally Funk
This profile of Mercury astronaut candidate Wally Funk briefly mentions the use of a floatation tank during psychological testing.

A Few Words About The Floatation Tank
A brief summary of floatation tank benefits.

Float Tank Plans
Centaure MetaTechnologies offers a CD explaining "how to build your own floatation tank including heating, ventilation, isolation, resources, parts, Epsom salt dissolving and maintenance."

William McNamara's Exclusive Fan Club Interview
In this interview (December, 1995), actor William McNamara briefly mentions his use of the floatation tank.

The Day The Earth Stood Still
An inspiring anecdote about Timothy Leary's last days, and therapeutic use of the floatation tank.

My First Isolation Tank Trip
On March 17th, 1989, Colin Pringle entered a floatation tank, and emerged one hour later into a different universe. This is his story, with some very helpful suggestions about optimizing the floatation tank experience.

The Floatation Tank Experience
In this Golden Age article, Aeshja Holbrook-Kennedy describes her first floatation tank experience. Includes a helpful neuro-chemistry summary.

Spa Technology & Treatments: Floating Your Way To Health & Relaxation
Tina Vinney describes her first floatation tank experience, and discusses possible use in aesthetics and beauty therapy.

Joe McMoneagle Online
A transcript of a CompuServe conference featuring Joe McMoneagle (January 4th, 1996), discusses Remote Viewing and floatation tank research: "I want to build a floatation tank in which to tesk certain sounds. The experiment is to completely emerse the entire body in sound . . . and I found that there are certain Indian drum beats that create repetitive images in some people. So, I want to combine the two and do some drumming and sound and floatation experiments."

Thomas H. Fine
Thomas H. Fine (Medical College of Ohio) is one of the world's foremost scientific experts on floatation tanks, and their use in therapy to treat hypertension and rheumatoid arthritis. Learn more about his research, and find references to journal and book chapters suitable for advanced research.

John W. Turner, Jr
John W. Turner, Jr (Physiology & Molecular Medicine, Medical College of Ohio) has studied floatation tank experiences, together with Thomas H. Fine. Their research continues to uncover insights into the tank's psychophysiological effects, and potential for brain hemispheric lateralization.

Stress-Reliever Tanks
According to this CNN report (April 14th, 2000), hyperspeed Hong Kong businesspeople are now using the floatation tank for stress relief.

Float Into Bliss & Drift Off
This Sunday Times article (March 14th, 2000) by Susan Clark explores how she overcame claustrophobia to benefit from her first tank experience: "Once you do trust that you are safe, the feeling is fantastic. Lying in the dark listening only to the sound of my heart gently beating, I realised that I could not tell where the water ended and my body began."

Floatworks
The United Kingdom's largest commercial floatation center details its services, and describes the benefits of floatation tanks.

Internet Movie Database: Altered States
The Internet Movie Database entry for Altered States (1980) features cast, credit, and review information.

The Isolation Tank: The Modern Floating Experience
From Dr. John Cunningham Lilly's informative Web site: tank accounts and experiences from The Deep Self: Profound Relaxation and the Tank Isolation Technique (New York: Warner Books, 1977), artist renditions of surface trips, and details of contemporary floatation tank designs.

The Samadhi Tank Company
Christened by Dr. John Cunningham Lilly in 1972, and spearheaded by Glenn and Lee Perry, the Samadhi Tank Company is your best source for floatation tanks. Their informative Web site features updates on Lilly's research, how to establish a tank business, therapeutic uses, and much more.

Gateways Books & Tapes
Founded by Human Potential teacher E.J. Gold, Gateways Books & Tapes is your best source for Dr. John Cunningham Lilly's writings on floatation tanks. Gold's books and monographs on transformational psychology and spiritual growth are highly recommended.

Going In The Tank
This San Francisco Weekly article (March 1st, 2000) by Silke Tudor describes the 1970s floatation tank "fad", and offers an insight into current applications. Tudor also records his first tank experience.

ThinkTank International
This Singapore-based floatation tank manufacturer has developed an automated system. Their informative Web site dispels many of the common fears and misconceptions about floatation tanks.

Floatation.com
Floatation.com features an extensive collection of links to float tank resources, media, manufacturers, and places to float.

Float Tank Australia
This Australian based manufacturer mentions that the Australian Institute of Sport uses floatation tanks to train its Olympic athletes.

Tank Alternatives Inc
This manufacturer describes floatation tanks as "Epsom Salt Hydrotherapy", and offers various alternatives, such as mineral spas and dry relaxation environments. This site also features news about ongoing floatation tank research.

International REST Investigators Society
Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy (REST) uses the floatation tank to work with stress-related disorders, chronic pain, anxiety disorders, and self meta-programming. Formed in 1983, the International REST Investigators Society (IRIS) leads scientific research using floatation tanks: "Using REST is very similar to working with hypnosis or biofeedback (actually they can both be combined with REST), and the knowledge and skills required for these approaches are much the same. REST offers the clinician something unavailable in either biofeedback or hypnosis, a therapeutic system that operates through the removal of environmental demands, rather than through the manipulation of environmental demands."

Dr. Baylah David: Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy
A collection of floatation tank articles and a scientific research bibliography by Baylah David, Ph.D (Neurobehavioral Health Services, Tucson, Arizona).

Tank Dreams
Shoshana Leibner uses Samadhi floatation tanks to explore art, breathwork, and yoga. Her pictures of Dr. John Cunningham Lilly's birthday (January 6th, 2000) on Maui are poignant.

Disinformation Dossier On Dr. John Cunningham Lilly
Check out the Disinformation dossier on Dr. John Cunningham Lilly.

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