If your chronic pain is linked to muscle tension, stress load, poor sleep, or nervous-system overactivation, explore clinical research on how float therapy can naturally provide relief.
Chronic pain isn’t rare—it’s one of the most widespread health issues affecting adults. In the U.S., the CDC estimates 24.3% of adults report living with chronic pain and 8.5% report high-impact chronic pain (pain that frequently limits life or work activities).
That means tens of millions of people are regularly navigating symptoms like muscle soreness, neck and back pain, arthritis-related discomfort, fibromyalgia flares, and inflammation-linked pain patterns, often while trying to sleep, work, exercise, and maintain a normal routine.
With so many adults living in persistent discomfort, it’s understandable that people are looking beyond medication alone for relief. One gentle, non-invasive option that has grown in popularity is float therapy, sometimes referred to as flotation-REST (Restricted Environmental Stimulation Therapy).
Here, we provide information on how float therapy can naturally help reduce chronic pain and present research from peer-reviewed studies on pain-reducing benefits.
What is float therapy (flotation-REST)?
Float therapy involves floating effortlessly in a quiet, dim or dark enclosed space—typically a shallow pool or room filled with warm water saturated with over 1,000 lbs of magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt) to increase buoyancy. The water is warmed to your body’s skin temperature to reduce sensory input even further.
The core idea is simple: less pressure, anti-inflammatory detoxification, and a downshift of the nervous system to help your experience reductions in pain intensity, muscle tension, inflammation and stress.
How float therapy helps chronic pain and inflammation symptoms
Float therapy isn’t a cure for chronic pain conditions, and it won’t replace medical care. But it does support symptom management through multiple pathways:
- Reduced mechanical load on joints and tissues: The zero-gravity environment of float therapy creates weightlessness, which removes pressure points along your spine and joints, which is especially helpful for achy backs, sore necks, and arthritis flare days.
- Reduced inflammation through magnesium absorption: Each float room is saturated with over 1,000 lbs of Epsom salt (magnesium sulfate). That’s about 1,000x more Epsom salt than a standard at-home Epsom salt bath. This super-saturated environment dissolves the magnesium and sulfate ions in warm water which is then absorbed through the skin. Magnesium is crucial for hundreds of bodily functions, and low levels are linked to inflammation. Boosting it can help calm inflammatory responses, decrease swelling and stiffness, and benefit conditions like gout, arthritis, and general muscle aches from overuse or injury.
- Muscle relaxation and reduced guarding: When the nervous system shifts into a calmer state, many people experience less protective muscle tension. Chronic pain and chronic stress often amplify each other. Lower stress can sometimes reduce pain sensitivity and improve coping.
Conditions for which people commonly try float therapy
People most often explore floating as a supportive option for:
- Muscle soreness and myofascial pain (tight neck/upper back, stress-related muscle tension)
- Neck and back pain (especially when muscle spasm/tension is part of the picture)
- Arthritis pain (osteoarthritis and other joint pain patterns)
- Fibromyalgia (widespread pain + fatigue + sleep issues)
- Inflammation-linked discomfort (where stress, poor sleep, and pain sensitization play a role)
Peer-reviewed studies on using float therapy for chronic pain
Float therapy eases chronic muscle tension pain (neck/back)
A peer-reviewed study published by Kjellgren et al. in Pain Research & Management conducted a clinical trial investigating whether flotation-REST could help people with chronic muscle tension pain in the neck and back.
- A total of 37 adults with ongoing aching muscle pain were randomly assigned to either a control group or an experimental group that received nine flotation sessions over three weeks in a high-salt flotation tank.
- Compared with controls, people who floated experienced a significant reduction in their most severe pain intensity, though lower-level pain did not change significantly.
- The floating group also showed reduced levels of a stress-related biochemical marker (a noradrenaline metabolite), improved optimism, lower anxiety and depression, and easier sleep onset after treatments
Regular float therapy reduces stress-related pain
A study conducted by Bood et al. examined the effects of float therapy on 88 adults diagnosed with stress-related chronic muscle tension pain in the neck and/or back. Participants received 12 flotation sessions over seven weeks. The study measured changes in pain, stress, anxiety, depression, sleep quality, and pain endurance before and after treatment.
- After the float therapy treatment, participants experienced reductions in stress, anxiety, depression, and pain, along with improved sleep quality.
- Both men and women reported similar improvements in pain and related symptoms, though women showed greater decreases in depression scores.
- The study also found that participants’ ability to endure experimentally induced pain improved after the float treatment, suggesting enhanced pain tolerance.
Float therapy provides short-term relief of mixed-cause chronic pain
In 2021 randomized clinical trial published in JAMA Network Open by Loose et al., medical doctors investigated whether a series of five float therapy sessions could alleviate chronic pain in adults diagnosed with a chronic pain disorder involving both psychological and physical factors. Researchers measured pain intensity one week after the last session, and assessed long-term effects at 12 and 24 weeks, along with anxiety, relaxation, pain area, and other secondary outcomes.
- Short-term symptom improvements: In the short term, both the float therapy and placebo groups experienced increases in relaxation and decreases in anxiety, pain intensity, and the extent of pain across the body, but these effects were temporary.
Early pilot data suggests float therapy benefits for osteoarthritis
A clinical pilot study investigated whether a course of floatation spa therapy might affect quality of life and symptoms in people with chronic osteoarthritis of weight-bearing joints. Fourteen adults began the study (with four dropping out), and the remaining participants received six weekly flotation spa sessions designed to provide buoyancy and relaxation. Researchers assessed outcomes using standardized quality-of-life questionnaires after the treatment period.
- All patients who completed the program showed improvements after the flotation sessions.
- The improvement was statistically significant on one questionnaire (a personalized measure of symptoms important to the patient), indicating meaningful changes in the symptoms participants cared most about.
Multi-site reports show float therapy improves pain-related symptoms of fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is often marked by widespread pain, poor sleep, fatigue, and heightened sensitivity—so the deep-rest aspect of floating is a logical target. An independent study conducted by three PhD-level scientists investigated the effects of float therapy on adults with fibromyalgia.
- Researchers recruited 81 adults diagnosed with fibromyalgia from five different countries and provided each person with three one-hour flotation-REST sessions over about three weeks.
- Participants completed standardized questionnaires before and after each session to rate symptoms such as pain, muscle tension, stress, anxiety, relaxation, sleep quality, well-being, energy, and ease of movement.
- After floating, participants reported temporary reductions in pain, muscle tension, stress, anxiety, and sadness, along with increases in relaxation, well-being, energy, ease of movement, and quality of sleep.
Interested in trying float therapy to help reduce chronic pain?
Float therapy has research supporting short-term reductions in pain intensity and stress-related pain, with particularly interesting findings in muscle tension pain and inflammation.
If your chronic pain is linked to muscle tension, stress load, poor sleep, or nervous-system overactivation, float therapy may be a reasonable adjunct to a broader plan that includes medical guidance, movement/rehab, and lifestyle supports.
Ready to give your body a break? Experience deep relaxation and weightless relief at Sanctuary Float Spa, where float therapy can help ease tired and sore muscles, neck and back pain, arthritis discomfort, and fibromyalgia symptoms.
Book your float today and discover how restorative rest can support the way your body feels—naturally.