In recognition of Month of the Military Caregiver in May, True REST Float Spa and Yellow Ribbon Fund, a national veteran service organization for wounded, ill and injured post-9/11 service members, caregivers and families, are working together to provide complimentary float therapy sessions to the nonprofit organization’s military caregivers. True REST feels it is important to recognize these remarkable and selfless individuals as they are often unrecognized for the support they provide. True REST is highlighting and showing their appreciation of the hard work, dedication and commitment it takes to be a military caregiver with float therapy benefits.
What is Month of the Military Caregiver?
Generally, caregivers are often referenced for providing care to children or the elderly, but other types of caregiving exist, including individuals who specifically care for wounded service members.
To honor caregivers who specifically dedicate their time to supporting members of the military, Month of the Military honors millions of military caregivers in the United States for their spirit of kindness. Military caregivers are usually spouses, parents, children or relatives, but in some cases, coworkers, neighbors and friends who take on caregiving responsibilities to foster recovery or support of wounded veterans requiring help with daily tasks.
The role of a military caregiver isn’t always easy. Caregivers can experience burnout, stress or anxiety due to the emotional and physical strain of caregiving and the requirements of their responsibilities. And in many cases, most military caregivers don’t expect to become caregivers—it’s not always planned, and their world changes instantly when they find out their loved one has been injured.
Military caregivers’ time and commitment can sometimes go unnoticed, especially in challenging and extraneous circumstances. While the Month of the Military Caregiver isn’t a federally recognized holiday, it is celebrated to honor and observe the sacrifices made for others, which is why True REST Float Spa and Yellow Ribbon Fund are partnering to show their appreciation for military caregivers through float therapy, a relaxing and holistic practice that focuses on total body wellness.
Supporting Military Caregivers with Float Therapy Benefits
Flotation therapy is a unique, holistic practice of floating in a pod filled with a specialized solution of 1,000 pounds of Epsom salts mixed with 180 gallons of water. When guests float at True REST, they enter a spa-like environment and have access to a private suite and showers. When they enter the float pod, they can customize their float experience to fit their needs, such as opening or closing the pod door, listening to music and turning off or on the lights.
While all these options are available, simply closing the float pod door and floating with no light or sound allows guests to experience sensory deprivation—all five senses are muted, so the brain stops allocating resources to processing external stimulation and distractions. When the mind completely relaxes, individuals are known to enter the theta brain wave state—a state equivalent to daydreaming that induces creativity, support memory function, help with deep sleep and meditation and creating a healthy mind. In turn, symptoms of mental health conditions are alleviated, such as anxiety, depression and stress.
But a quiet and sensory-free environment is not all that float therapy offers. There is a physical component—it can address conditions of the physical body through the buoyancy of the water in the pod. Because the experience is gravity-free due to the immense amount of Epsom salts, the body floats atop the water set at skin-temperate. With gravity’s hold completely removed, no longer are the muscles and joints of the body beholden to strain or tension. As a result, being in a float pod reduces pain symptoms of conditions like muscle tension, fibromyalgia, arthritis, headaches, migraines, etc.
Flotation therapy is a powerful tool with major benefits for mental and physical well-being. Because it intends to be a calming experience, it’s useful for individuals looking for a moment to relax and find tranquil peace. This can be especially valuable for individuals who don’t often have any time for themselves or to focus on self-care—and this is true of military caregivers.
These individuals dedicate their lives to supporting their military loved ones and forgo putting themselves first to fulfill daily needs. Taking a moment to find some reprieve from the stresses of their role can better equip them with wellness to accomplish their caregiving responsibilities. Self-care can also help them build better relationships with those around them, provide more balance mentally and physically, and reduce the side effects that stress and burnout have on the body.
True REST Float Spa and Yellow Ribbon Fund want to provide this type of wellness care to military caregivers through float therapy, temporarily reversing their caregiving roles during a 60-minute float session and allowing them to experience what it’s like to be taken care of instead.
Experience Float Therapy Benefits at True REST
To kick off honoring military caregivers for Month of the Military Caregiver, True REST Float Spa invited a few caregivers and their families to float free at True REST Float Spa Houston on Saturday, April 30. Everyone was treated to a luxurious 60-minute flotation session with some caregivers and their military members floating for the very first time.
Amanda and Caleb Saxby used floating to feel less achy, tense and relaxed. (On the right).
Carolyn and Steve Wright experienced relaxation during their float sessions. (On the left).
Traci and Eric Forehand tried floating for the first time and found the experience relaxing for the body and a nice experience. (On the right).
Scott and Kari Whitfield tried floating to spend time with each other and try something new. (On the left).
Floatation Therapy as an Alternative Treatment for PTSD
True REST Float Spa is committed to the military. To continue its endeavors to provide support to military members and their families, True REST Float Spa and Yellow Ribbon Fund are dedicated beyond Month of the Military Caregiver to honor those who have served in the U.S. military.
Together, the organizations have partnered to benefit float therapy research and its positive effects on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a common condition experienced by active-duty military members and veterans. A study published by Statista found that 75% of veterans and active service members have experienced PTSD after 9/11 from 2017 to 2021.
Float therapy research is integral to understanding its benefits and providing holistic options that give military members a healthier quality of life.
True Rest Float Spa’s Military Commitment
True REST Float Spa wouldn’t be a franchising brand without Jim Rowe learning about flotation therapy from a military friend who utilized the practice to alleviate pain from an injury during deployment and symptoms of substance misuse. As the CEO of True REST, Rowe developed a plan to franchise the therapy practice, bringing it to communities nationwide to experience its holistic and therapeutic benefits on the mind and body.
Since that meeting, True REST has been dedicated to supporting active-duty military and veterans in multiple opportunities that focus on their well-being and entrepreneurial wellness.
- On the 11th day of each month, True REST Float Spa offers free float therapy sessions to military members and veterans. Designated U.S. Military Appreciation Day, True REST has gifted over 18,000 complimentary float sessions supporting their mental and physical health since 2015.
- On Veterans Day, True REST closes its doors to the general public and provides an entire day of free flotation therapy sessions for active and retired military members.
- Offering a 10% discount on initial franchise fees to military members and veterans, True REST offers a pathway to entrepreneurship for individuals who want to become small business owners.
Yellow Ribbon Fund’s Pledge to Support Military Caregivers
Yellow Ribbon Fund was established in recognition of a need within the military community to support families that learn about their injured or wounded military loved ones and who often become a caregiver seemingly overnight. With the mission to keep families together to focus on healing, the organization provides necessities families need during this vulnerable period, ultimately allowing them to be a source of encouragement so military members can heal and build stronger family bonds.
Yellow Ribbon Fund supports military families and their caregivers with two adaptive programs to offer relief and help to those going through incredibly vulnerable moments.
- The Crossroads Program focuses on families supporting their wounded military loved ones during the critical recovery phases. By providing short-term and long-term housing and transportation and gift cards used for necessities, families have a chance to focus on what’s most important—staying together while their service member is being treated at Walter Reed National Medical Center or Fort Belvoir. Finding out their loved one has been injured during deployment is a life-changing experience and one that many caregiving families are not prepared for. Yellow Ribbon Fund bridges the gap between the uncertainty and families being able to stay by their service member’s bedside while healing.
- The Keystone Program is an essential service that focuses on giving military caregivers the tools they need to succeed in their unique roles. When a service member is treated in a hospital, families receive overwhelming support. Yet as they return home, that community and support dwindle. Focusing on this disparity, Yellow Ribbon Fund provides a pipeline of sanctuary and support to military caregivers and their injured loved ones. Transitional services include health and wellness training, education and events, life skills development, family retreats and peer-to-peer support offered through organized community groups.
Focusing on Military Caregivers
Giving back and offering support where needed is a prominent proponent of Yellow Ribbon Fund and True REST Float Spa. Honoring military caregivers during May is an extension of their belief that improving the lives of others can make a positive difference and change people’s lives.
To learn more about Yellow Ribbon Fund’s focus on military caregivers, families and wounded or injured service members, visit https://yellowribbonfund.org/story/. For more information about True REST Float Spa’s contribution to the military caregivers and active-duty military and veterans, visit https://truerest.com/donate/ and https://truerest.com/free-floats-for-military-veterans/.