A new business is opening soon on Cornerswell Road! From August, Rest Space will be introducing flotation therapy to Penarth. We caught up with owners, Ryan and Charlotte Chamberlain, to talk more about their exciting new venture.

Relaxation will start at the door, as Ryan and Charlotte continue to create the perfect space for your experience, including two floatation pod rooms and a charming post-float relaxation area with garden.

So what is floatation therapy? Ryan and Charlotte were happy to share their love of floating and want to encourage its usage. “You will be deprived of all seven senses, laying effortlessly on top of a shallow pool of warm water saturated with half a tonne of Epsom salt.” Ryan added, “after around three ‘floats’, once you’ve become used to the feeling, is when you’ll see the true benefits. And with regular visits, you’ll start to see all the ways it can change your life.”

Every person is unique and so will their floatation experience. Whether it’s to reduce anxiety, provide pain relief, inspire self-reflection or simply shut away distraction, Rest Space promises to create a tailored experience for you.

“We’re looking forward to getting to know the community, and tailoring our service to best suit everyone. We’re planning our opening times to best accommodate people’s lives, whether it’s an early morning float or you need to decompress after a long day.”

Ryan and Charlotte have already been welcomed into the community, with locals intrigued and wanting to know more.

Despite what people may think, the use of floatation therapy is not a new concept, having first been established in the 1950s, and since then there’s been a lot of research into it’s benefits. “Floatation therapy has so many benefits that most people don’t know about. Shutting off all your senses leaves you without distractions or stimulation- it creates a space where you can truly relax in the weightlessness. Floating reduces your blood pressure and has been proven to reduce anxiety, help with other mental health issues, and has physical benefits too.”

Ryan and Charlotte have been interested in floatation therapy for a long time, trying it for the first time out of curiosity. Charlotte worked as an assistant psychologist during COVID-19, and has worked in a variety of caring roles since. She says, “I found that people looked to me to give them solutions. It was a tough time for all of us and that’s when I started to wonder if there was something people could do to help before it becomes a problem.”

Like a lot of people, I knew little about floatation therapy. Questions arose around feeling claustrophobic, the process behind it, will you be able to open the lid yourself if needed? All these concerns were addressed, and, by the end of it, I couldn’t wait to give it a go myself.

Find out more at www.restspace.co.uk and follow them Instagram.