Floating + Pregnancy = True Love
One Love Float, “Calgary’s friendliest float studio”, is owned by Treeka Drake, master herbalist, holistic therapist, intuitive healer, and all around incredible human being.
(For the basics on floating, please check out One Love Float’s FAQs page. Don’t worry, we’ll wait.)
First float? Here’s what you can expect:
One Love Float is located in the community of Silver Springs, in northwest Calgary, nestled on a cozy and quiet neighborhood street. As you cross the threshold into Treeka's space, you will feel calm, grounded, and safe. This is in no small part because of Treeka. As Christine said to her “You are a part of the magic of this place. I do not think this place would be what it is without YOU.”
When you arrive for your first float, Treeka takes the time to make sure you feel comfortable and ready to float.
Image description: The One Love Float studio space - the lighting is dim, with comfy couches, cozy rugs on the floor, a side table with a Buddha statue, and art on the walls.
There are a few logistics to be aware of when floating for the first time (stay on your back, don’t get the salt in your eyes) as well as some emotional considerations (Treeka describes your first float as “an awkward first date” - the key is to allow the experience to be just as it is). By the time you’re actually getting into the tank for the first time you feel confident and eager.
It’s obvious from the moment you meet her that Treeka is all about the people. Her dream is to create a One Love community/tribe/family. She wants to build a space where people feel cozy and secure, a place where they know they are welcome to stay and hang out and talk about their experience.
Ironically, Treeka never had any intention of owning her own business – but for her, getting to know the people who choose to come to One Love Float, who choose to have their experiences there, to allow her to see pieces of who they are, is what gets her up in the morning. As she says, “It's soul delicious”.
What are the benefits of floating during pregnancy?
In Treeka's experience, the physical benefits of floating are magnified during pregnancy. The anti-gravity environment takes all the pressure off of your joints and muscles and allows your body to completely decompress.
Image description: A pregnant person floats in a One Love Float tank.
And while she doesn’t recommend this to everyone, for her pregnant customers, she encourages you to turn over and float on your belly! This opens up the sacral space and creates room in the body for baby to move. Many moms report that their babies are very calm while they float on their backs but as soon as they turn over “It’s a party and a dance”.
Emotionally, floating is a wonderful opportunity to pause and connect to baby - Treeka calls it “womb squared”. The tanks are fantastically womb like (nurturing, comforting, cradling, you’re resting in a saline solution) and they offer a distraction free environment to just tap into what’s happening with your baby.
Floating invites you to practice a level of mindfulness, of being in your body, that is practical for labor.
The tanks are a space where magic can happen but you “need to get out of your own way”. You really need to let go of expectation and surrender to what is rather than what you think it should be. As Treeka says, “you may not get the float you think you should have, but you always get the float you need”.
There are so few opportunities in our culture to be alone with self, to be quiet, to just be, so it can be scary to do that on purpose. The tanks offer a chance to work through that fear and begin to build a trusting relationship with yourself that continues into labor.
Being able to work with what is, to surrender to the intensity of labor, to trust yourself in the process of bringing your baby into the world, can have a positive impact on your perception and experience of labor and birth.
Floating during pregnancy is also a chance to develop a ritual of self-care that can continue after baby is born. It is so easy to be taken over entirely by the needs of the wee being who has swept into your life. The ability to give yourself permission to recharge for an hour, so you can show up again for all the other things in your life, is essential.
I’m in! How do I book?
If you’d like to book a float you can book online or call 587-293-5628. Treeka encourages everyone to plan to float more than once – it can take a few sessions to work through the awkwardness of trying something new. If you give floating an honest chance, you’ll discover how it best applies to your life.
(If you are a current Five Elements Birth Services doula client, check your Welcome! package for information on how to access your community partner discount)
Not a client yet? No problem!
To listen to the entirety of Five Elements Birth Services interview with Treeka:
