I don't think soaking is necessary, although I have heard some snakes like it. I don't have experience with mites, but have read plenty of posts on this site that say if it has mites, soaking alone won't do the trick. As for helping it shed, in my experience, bumping the humidity to 60-70 percent as soon as the eyes get funky has resulted in a perfect shed every time. If it's soaking on its own, check the eyes--I've caught mine in its water dish a couple times and sure enough, it was shed time.