The invisible illness

Trigger warning: mention of suicide and self harm.

Otherwise known as the invisible illness, something that cannot be seen and therefore cannot be believed, mental illness is the secret in disguise.

It is the thing that people are beginning to talk about, but still only one person really understands and that person is, you.

When sitting in a classroom or at a desk at work, you're hiding the bandage on your wrist covered by your long sleeves. No one would know what happened in your bedroom half an hour earlier with that bright smile on your face.

An awkward joke of suicide and people would say 'of course you would've mentioned a suicide attempt because no one would turn up to work the next day having tried to jump off a chair with a dressing gown rope around their neck at 10:59pm the night before.'

Because someone who is still sending text messages and picking up your calls can put as many emoticons as they like and filtered pictures on instagram, to build a false picture.

It's trying to describe exactly what it is like to live with mental illness and there not being words to encompass it.

It's everyone talking hot air because it's the latest topic and trend, but some don't mean anything by it. But some are also making massive positive change.

It's feeling completely detached in a room full of people and acomplishing things that others already have and feeling as if you've had to climb a mountain to get there and they've only had to walk up a hill. It's worth so much more.

People saying that there is nothing to be depressed about and life could be so much worse...yes I know. Of course I choose to have moments of pain.

It's...invisible. It's hidden. But the symptoms are real and you see them every day.

Ask, talk and help until you believe, because it is very much believable when they are no longer here.

Can Flotation Therapy help with anxiety? | AD

This article looks at whether floatation can be an effective way to treat anxiety.

What is Floating?

Floatation involves lying in a floatation tank, a large, egg-shaped pod filled with highly concentrated Epsom saltwater heated to skin temperature. It is also known as Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy (REST) and sensory deprivation as you are deprived of all senses - sound, sight, smell, taste, and touch. The tank is completely lightless and soundless and the Epsom saltwater causes you to float as you feel free from gravity.

Experience in the Tank

Whilst in the tank, you are freed of all external stimuli as you float weightlessly in the darkness and silence. Floating activates the parasympathetic nervous system which slows the heart rate and helps you to relax. Your brain reaches its lucid, not-thinking alpha state and any anxious thoughts dissipate. You then enter a theta state, a deep state of relaxation and meditation, a half-sleep state reached just before drifting off to sleep or waking up.

Floating and Anxiety - The Evidence

Justin Feinstein is a clinical neuropsychologist who investigates float therapy as a treatment for those with anxiety and depression. He carried out a study in which he mapped the brains of participants using fMRI and then took images again after a 60-minute float. He found that floating quietens the activity of the amygdala, the part of the brain which controls fear and anxiety.

A 2018 study on 50 participants with stress and anxiety-related disorders found that a one-hour session in a floatation tank can provide relief from stress and anxiety symptoms across a range of conditions including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Panic Disorder, Agoraphobia, Social Anxiety Disorder, and Generalised Anxiety Disorder.

A 2016 study of 46 people with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) found that 12 floatation sessions over 4 months reduced symptoms of GAD including depression, fatigue, and sleep issues and 37% reached full remission of GAD symptoms post-treatment.

A 2006 study investigated the long-term effects of floatation-REST 4 months after treatment. Participants with stress-related pain underwent 12 float sessions and found that floating reduced pain, stress, anxiety, and depression and this was maintained for 4 months after treatment.

A 2014 study looked at sensory isolation and floatation treatment as a preventive healthcare intervention. The study found that 12 float sessions over 7 weeks decreased stress, depression, anxiety, and pain in healthy volunteers.

One 2013 study assessed a single patient with PTSD, ADHD, autism, anxiety, and depression who floated over 50 times for a year and a half. The floatation therapy improved quality of life, wellbeing, and healthy behaviour and there were no negative effects. The participant did not take any medication during the course of the therapy.

Whilst there needs to be further studies into whether floating can be used as an effective therapy for anxiety, these studies demonstrate the promising impact that floating can have on treating anxiety and mental health. This is evidence that floating is scientifically proven to have a positive impact on the mind.

This post was written by i-sopod, a revolutionary float pod manufacturer and market-leading supplier to float centres in the UK, USA, Europe and Australia.

Year in Review 2019

This year as with the last, have been the hardest couple of years since I began my journey of mental illness when I was seventeen...albeit this year has been slightly better than the last.

I entered this year doing my dream job and moving flats so I am closer to work which gave me a much safer and shorter commute! I also get to enjoy London which I only dreamt of as a child. I have had accomplishments in my job, but also failures. It is what it is and it is definitely building my resilience. I know that it may take me longer to get to where I need to be and that's okay; some people are better at things than others. My new place still isn't much for what I have to pay, but it allows me to save up for a place of my own and in the meantime I have added my little touches to make it the best I can. I also got a new car which I had dreamt of as a child whilst still looking after my twenty year old model from my childhood. I have also been lucky enough to travel to two of my places on my bucket list this year; Australia and America. I feel very blessed.

I have made a few good friends too by stepping outside of my comfort zone and I am hoping to continue to make more next year before I eventually move jobs (maybe!)

I lost a pet this year and I feel I am soon to lose another and albeit they are small, they give me just as much love as any other animal could. Family illnesses have continued and it has been touch and go at some points and still is, which is bringing me into unchartered territory. I have always grown up having an ill family member, but this time around the options are getting thinner on the ground. I have also felt heartbreak over and over again and it is still one of the most painful things I have felt; it is grief. It has taught me that people can show you some very special things that you couldn't see before you met them and everyone has something to bring to your life. Those who are special will always remain special to you, no matter how near or far or whom they are with. It brings great sadness, but it also is a great teacher. I didn't realise until now that your heart could continuously ache for such a long time...

I have built so much strength this year and at many times I have reached the lowest point that I could possibly go. Pure loneliness and heartache and not being able to express it either. Confusion, suicidal thoughts and self harm, trying to heal versus wanting to talk to others and feeling as if I could never make it out alive..it's been a tough one. I have made mistakes and I am not perfect, but looking back to this time last year, I have grown.

Time and space is still the best healer I know. Also, civility.

I hope that next year I continue to progress in my career, save or find somewhere to live and continue to listen to myself to ensure I understand my decisions fully. Only you know you. I hope that health and happiness surrounds myself and those around me because grief really is the worst pain.