Hailed as the new wonder treatment, salt cave therapy is now all the rage amongst stressed, burnt out London office workers. Claiming to work wonders on the skin, reduce stress, cure insomnia and even improve your mood, is this saline wonder treatment all it’s cracked up to be? I ventured out of central London to find out.
Initiation into Salt cave therapy
Tucked away in an unassuming, residential street, a salt cave is one of the last things you would expect to see popping up amidst the rows of semi-detatcheds. On arrival, I’m met by a smiling receptionist who ushers me into the reception area which is akin to a dentist’s waiting room. Shell-shocked figures suddenly emerge from a side door covered in a thick film of dust looking like they’ve just survived a bomb blast. Feeling slightly unnerved, I instantly regret wearing black – white or neutral colours are the way to go for a salt bath escapade.
Inside the salt cave therapy centre
With protection in mind, we don, surgical foot and headwear before venturing into the cave. Birds tweeting and the gentle lapping of the sea are the first sensory surprises in store in this strange white world. The enclosed nature of the space combined with the lack of windows initially makes me feel slightly claustrophobic but the sun loungers and tables laden with books and magazines gives it an inviting kitsch holiday vibe.
The briny tang of salt instantly settles on my lip as I roll up my sleeves to give my skin more exposure to the therapeutic effects of the salt. The negatively charged ionized salt and trace minerals are believed to draw toxins and impurities from the body and reduce inflammation.
Health benefits of salt cave therapy
I Inhale deep lungfuls in the hope that it will clear out a year’s worth of the capital’s particulate matter. Indeed, salt cave immersion is proven to help many respiratory ailments such as asthma, sinisitus and COPD. The deep breathing also helps to soothe and relax and this technique combined with the sound of the sea lapping and the birds tweeting does help me to drift off. It is claimed that a forty-five minute session in a salt cave is the equivalent to spending two days flaked out on the beach so if the annual leave won’t stretch to a weekend on the Costas – this could be the next best thing.
Ensconced in this womb of briny, loveliness, I decide I could quite easily move in here permanently – a world away from the external assailants of pollution and coronavirus. But all too soon our session ends and we re-emerge in our dusty layers to take on the outside world again. As City dwellers we all need a salt cave to retreat to and I have a feeling that it won’t be long until I am back there again.
I booked my salt cave therapy session via Groupon: https://www.groupon.co.uk/deals/salt-cave-9-27059565