Floatation Tanks Sent to Maui to Treat Wildfire PTSD
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- floatation tanks are being shipped in a container with three units to Maui, Hawaii, to address the mental‑health fallout from the August 2023 wildfires.
- Justin Feinstein announced at the Embodied Minds Summit on May 2 that the tanks will be free for first responders and wildfire survivors and will be used to collect long‑term data on their therapeutic effect.
- Float Research Collective has spent more than a decade studying Float‑REST therapy, finding it cuts anxiety and PTSD symptoms at levels comparable to benzodiazepines.
- Maui wildfires in August 2023 killed 102 people, destroyed thousands of homes and businesses, and have driven depression and anxiety risk up by over 50 %.
- Float-REST therapy involves lying in a temperature‑controlled, salt‑filled pool with earplugs and lights off, which reduces sensory input and triggers a restorative, sleep‑like brain state.
Why it matters: Maui residents, first responders, and wildfire survivors will gain free access to a proven, drug‑free therapy that curbs soaring PTSD rates, while Float Research Collective gathers data to validate a scalable, low‑cost mental‑health solution.
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