I dream of having a good long soak.  I have a tough time relaxing my back muscles. My chiropractor and masseuse tell me that if I could relax more, their treatments wouldn’t hurt as much. Are they kidding? I’m a hairstylist/nail tech. I use my arms and upper back all the time. I get cramps in the muscles along my spine more than I get them in my calves. When I use a hot pad, they relax, but not much.

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I wish I had a real deep tub to soak in. We don’t have a bathtub at home. Well, we have one, but it doesn’t count. It is outside and used for extra dog water in the summertime.

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I decided to splurge and go to a local day spa to have a good long soak. It was wonderful. The tub was the deepest I have ever used. The water covered all of my body, and if I crossed my legs a little, I even floated. After I absorbed the heat, it felt like I was boneless with no muscle. I started overheating. I mean, I was overheated. Out of the tub went one leg, then an arm., I reached the point of overheating. The desire to cool off was stronger than the desire for the soak. Finding my bones and muscles and putting them to use was very difficult. I was light headed and felt like passing out. In retrospect, I wondered how hot the water was. There was no ventilation in the room so the hot air could not escape. I just took my time cooling off, being very glad that my heart was healthy.

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After I managed to get my clothes on and get out of that room, I sat and cooled off. I found out that the tub was a Rubbermaid stock tank from Tractor Supply. In and of itself that’s not a bad thing. How do you sanitize a textured Rubbermaid surface so that the next customer doesn’t get infected with something? Who regulates one-person tubs? It’s not the board of cosmetology or the board of massage. Maybe the health department does. I know there are regulations on public saunas and Jacuzzi tubs with temperature regulations and chemical requirements.

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I’m not going back until I have figured this out. In the meantime, I like the idea of putting something in our house so I can soak. It is a very relaxing experience. We have a place in front of our bedroom that is an unfinished bathroom. It even has water and sewer already! I like the extra space for our bedroom, but for a tub that I use occasionally, I might do it. Standard bathtubs are so expensive; this one may be slightly tacky but the right price. I still have a lot of unanswered questions.

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So what do you think? Do you enjoy a good long soak in a tub somewhere? Maybe this economical solution is for you.